5 sept 2019
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo attends a United Nations Security Council meeting on August 20, 2019 at the United Nations in New York
The United States has reportedly blocked a UN Security Council statement on criticizing Israel for attacking Lebanon.
AFP reported on Thursday quoting diplomatic sources that the draft text, put forward by France, denounced all violations of the Blue Line “and strongly calls upon all parties to respect the cessation of hostilities.”
It also expressed deep concern at the recent face-off between Israel and Hezbollah across the Blue Line.
Diplomats said Washington blocked the first version twice and wanted Hezbollah to be specifically slammed in the text.
Late last month, Israel launched a drone strike on Hezbollah's Beirut stronghold.
Lebanese President Michel Aoun denounced the attack as “a declaration of war” against the Arab country, and vowed that Lebanon will defend its sovereignty against the Israeli aggression.
“What happened was similar to a declaration of war, which allows us to resort to our right to defending our sovereignty,” Aoun's office quoted him as saying during a meeting with the United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon Yan Kubish on August 26.
The Lebanese president’s remarks came a day after two drones crashed in Beirut's southern suburbs.
According to the Lebanese Resistance Movement, Hezbollah, the first drone had fallen on a building housing Hezbollah’s media office in Dahieh suburb.
The second drone, which appeared to have been sent by Israel to search for the first one, had crashed in an empty plot nearby after being detonated in the air, it added.
Following the drone raids, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbollah’s secretary general, vowed in a televised speech that fighters of the movement would counter any further violation of the Lebanese airspace by Israeli drones, warning the Tel Aviv regime to immediately halt such breaches.
The United States has reportedly blocked a UN Security Council statement on criticizing Israel for attacking Lebanon.
AFP reported on Thursday quoting diplomatic sources that the draft text, put forward by France, denounced all violations of the Blue Line “and strongly calls upon all parties to respect the cessation of hostilities.”
It also expressed deep concern at the recent face-off between Israel and Hezbollah across the Blue Line.
Diplomats said Washington blocked the first version twice and wanted Hezbollah to be specifically slammed in the text.
Late last month, Israel launched a drone strike on Hezbollah's Beirut stronghold.
Lebanese President Michel Aoun denounced the attack as “a declaration of war” against the Arab country, and vowed that Lebanon will defend its sovereignty against the Israeli aggression.
“What happened was similar to a declaration of war, which allows us to resort to our right to defending our sovereignty,” Aoun's office quoted him as saying during a meeting with the United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon Yan Kubish on August 26.
The Lebanese president’s remarks came a day after two drones crashed in Beirut's southern suburbs.
According to the Lebanese Resistance Movement, Hezbollah, the first drone had fallen on a building housing Hezbollah’s media office in Dahieh suburb.
The second drone, which appeared to have been sent by Israel to search for the first one, had crashed in an empty plot nearby after being detonated in the air, it added.
Following the drone raids, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbollah’s secretary general, vowed in a televised speech that fighters of the movement would counter any further violation of the Lebanese airspace by Israeli drones, warning the Tel Aviv regime to immediately halt such breaches.
3 sept 2019
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Israel has reportedly evacuated its soldiers from a military base which was recently targeted by the Lebanese Hezbollah resistance movement in a retaliatory operation.
On Monday, a reporter for Russia’s RT Arabic strolled uninterrupted around the deserted Avivim base on the Lebanese border, less than 24 hours after Hezbollah’s operation there. In a video uploaded to the TV network’s Facebook account, RT Arabic correspondent Dalia Nammari wanders with her camera crew through the abandoned base. She passes by military vehicles and enters dormitories, where she finds the Israeli soldiers’ personal belongings as well as rifle magazines. |
“Everything is empty, there is no soldier here and there is nothing,” she says.
The report prompted the Israeli army to claim that the outpost had been evacuated a few days before the Hezbollah attack.
“This was a post on the border line that was classified last week as a threatened position,” the Israeli army spokesperson’s unit said in a statement. “It was therefore evacuated during the week.”
There was “no concern of information leakage” as contents of the outpost had been removed,” the spokesperson claimed, adding that the Israeli forces had returned to base in accordance with a new security assessment.
On Sunday, Hezbollah fired two anti-tank guided missiles at a moving Israeli armored vehicle at the Avivim base north of the occupied lands, killing and wounding its occupants.
The attack came in response to an Israeli air raid last week that killed two resistance fighters in Syria as well as an Israeli drone attack on southern Beirut.
The report prompted the Israeli army to claim that the outpost had been evacuated a few days before the Hezbollah attack.
“This was a post on the border line that was classified last week as a threatened position,” the Israeli army spokesperson’s unit said in a statement. “It was therefore evacuated during the week.”
There was “no concern of information leakage” as contents of the outpost had been removed,” the spokesperson claimed, adding that the Israeli forces had returned to base in accordance with a new security assessment.
On Sunday, Hezbollah fired two anti-tank guided missiles at a moving Israeli armored vehicle at the Avivim base north of the occupied lands, killing and wounding its occupants.
The attack came in response to an Israeli air raid last week that killed two resistance fighters in Syria as well as an Israeli drone attack on southern Beirut.
2 sept 2019
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This video grab shows the moment an Israeli personnel carrier is targeted near Avivim settlement, northern Israel, on September 1, 2019 by fighters from the Lebanese Hezbollah resistance movement.
The Arabic-language al-Manar satellite television station affiliated with the Lebanese Hezbollah resistance movement has aired new footage of a recent attack on Israeli positions in the occupied territories. The video footage starts with a description of Avivim settlement in northern Israel, and the nearby military base that Israeli troops had abandoned prior to the assault. It further notes that the Avivim military base includes command centers, |
and that around 100 officers and soldiers are stationed at the facility under usual circumstances, who are responsible for various military tasks, including intelligence and maintenance.
The video then shows two empty personnel carriers, which the Israeli military had parked in the vicinity of the base in an attempt to deceive Hezbollah members, and how resistance fighters avoid civilian vehicles passing before the main target shows up.
Hezbollah fighters then fired two missiles at the Israeli military vehicle, sending it up in flames and apparently fully destroying it.
Hezbollah’s attack came in response to an Israeli air raid last week that killed two of its fighters in Syria, as well as an Israeli drone attack on southern Beirut.
According to the Lebanese resistance movement, the missiles launched from Lebanon destroyed an armored personnel carrier in Avivim, killing or wounding those inside it. The Israeli military, however, alleged the attack did not lead to any casualties while adding that it had fired 100 shells into Lebanon in return.
Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri on Sunday called upon the international community to "intervene" to prevent the situation from escalating into a full-fledged war, his office said.
Hariri asked US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and French President Emmanuel Macron's foreign policy adviser, Emmanuel Bonne, to help put an end to conflicts on the southern borders between Lebanon and Israel.
Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said on Saturday evening that the resistance movement was determined to give a response to Israel over its recent drone incursion into Lebanon.
"The need for a response is decided," he said during a televised speech ahead of the Islamic lunar calendar month of Muharram – the 10th day of which marks the martyrdom anniversary of Imam Hussein, the third Shia Imam and Prophet Muhammad's grandson.
The Hezbollah chief added that the response was about “establishing the rules of engagement and... the logic of protection for the country. Israel must pay a price.”
On August 26, Hezbollah said Israel had sent two drones into Lebanon on a bombing mission the previous weekend.
According to the resistance movement, the first drone had fallen on a building housing Hezbollah’s media office in the suburb of Dahieh. The second drone, which appeared to have been sent by Israel to search for the first one, had crashed in an empty plot nearby after being detonated in the air, it added.
Following the drone raids, Nasrallah vowed in a televised speech that fighters of the resistance movement would counter any further violation of the Lebanese airspace by Israeli drones.
The video then shows two empty personnel carriers, which the Israeli military had parked in the vicinity of the base in an attempt to deceive Hezbollah members, and how resistance fighters avoid civilian vehicles passing before the main target shows up.
Hezbollah fighters then fired two missiles at the Israeli military vehicle, sending it up in flames and apparently fully destroying it.
Hezbollah’s attack came in response to an Israeli air raid last week that killed two of its fighters in Syria, as well as an Israeli drone attack on southern Beirut.
According to the Lebanese resistance movement, the missiles launched from Lebanon destroyed an armored personnel carrier in Avivim, killing or wounding those inside it. The Israeli military, however, alleged the attack did not lead to any casualties while adding that it had fired 100 shells into Lebanon in return.
Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri on Sunday called upon the international community to "intervene" to prevent the situation from escalating into a full-fledged war, his office said.
Hariri asked US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and French President Emmanuel Macron's foreign policy adviser, Emmanuel Bonne, to help put an end to conflicts on the southern borders between Lebanon and Israel.
Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said on Saturday evening that the resistance movement was determined to give a response to Israel over its recent drone incursion into Lebanon.
"The need for a response is decided," he said during a televised speech ahead of the Islamic lunar calendar month of Muharram – the 10th day of which marks the martyrdom anniversary of Imam Hussein, the third Shia Imam and Prophet Muhammad's grandson.
The Hezbollah chief added that the response was about “establishing the rules of engagement and... the logic of protection for the country. Israel must pay a price.”
On August 26, Hezbollah said Israel had sent two drones into Lebanon on a bombing mission the previous weekend.
According to the resistance movement, the first drone had fallen on a building housing Hezbollah’s media office in the suburb of Dahieh. The second drone, which appeared to have been sent by Israel to search for the first one, had crashed in an empty plot nearby after being detonated in the air, it added.
Following the drone raids, Nasrallah vowed in a televised speech that fighters of the resistance movement would counter any further violation of the Lebanese airspace by Israeli drones.
An Israeli reconnaissance balloon flies over Meiss Ej Jabal village in the southern Lebanon on September 2, 2019
The Israeli military has launched a reconnaissance balloon over the southern part of Lebanon, a day after Israeli army forces and fighters from the Lebanese Hezbollah resistance movement exchanged fire along the border with the occupied Palestinian territories following a week of rising tensions.
Lebanon’s official National News Agency reported that the device was sent over Meiss Ej Jabal village in Marjeyoun district in the early hours of Monday.
On Sunday, Hezbollah fired a number of anti-tank missiles at an Israeli army base and vehicles near the border in response to an Israeli air raid last week that killed two of its fighters in Syria, as well as an Israeli drone attack on southern Beirut.
According to the Lebanese resistance movement, the missiles launched from Lebanon destroyed a tank in Avivim in northern Israel, killing or wounding those inside it. The Israeli military, however, alleged the attack did not lead to any casualties. The Israeli army said it fired 100 shells inside Lebanon in return.
Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri on Sunday called upon the international community to "intervene" to prevent the situation from escalating into a full-fledged war, his office said.
Hariri asked US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and French President Emmanuel Macron to help put an end to conflicts on the southern borders between Lebanon and Israel.
Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said on Saturday evening that the resistance movement was determined to give a response to Israel over its recent drone incursion into Lebanon.
"The need for a response is decided," he said during a televised speech ahead of the Islamic lunar calendar month of Muharram – the 10th day of which marks the martyrdom anniversary of Imam Hussein, the third Shia Imam and Prophet Muhammad's grandson.
The Hezbollah chief added that the response was about “establishing the rules of engagement and... the logic of protection for the country. Israel must pay a price.”
On August 26, Hezbollah said Israel had sent two drones into Lebanon on a bombing mission the previous weekend.
According to the resistance movement, the first drone had fallen on a building housing Hezbollah’s media office in the suburb of Dahieh. The second drone, which appeared to have been sent by Israel to search for the first one, had crashed in an empty plot nearby after being detonated in the air, it added.
Following the drone raids, Nasrallah vowed in a televised speech that fighters of the resistance movement would counter any further violation of the Lebanese airspace by Israeli drones.
The Israeli military has launched a reconnaissance balloon over the southern part of Lebanon, a day after Israeli army forces and fighters from the Lebanese Hezbollah resistance movement exchanged fire along the border with the occupied Palestinian territories following a week of rising tensions.
Lebanon’s official National News Agency reported that the device was sent over Meiss Ej Jabal village in Marjeyoun district in the early hours of Monday.
On Sunday, Hezbollah fired a number of anti-tank missiles at an Israeli army base and vehicles near the border in response to an Israeli air raid last week that killed two of its fighters in Syria, as well as an Israeli drone attack on southern Beirut.
According to the Lebanese resistance movement, the missiles launched from Lebanon destroyed a tank in Avivim in northern Israel, killing or wounding those inside it. The Israeli military, however, alleged the attack did not lead to any casualties. The Israeli army said it fired 100 shells inside Lebanon in return.
Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri on Sunday called upon the international community to "intervene" to prevent the situation from escalating into a full-fledged war, his office said.
Hariri asked US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and French President Emmanuel Macron to help put an end to conflicts on the southern borders between Lebanon and Israel.
Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said on Saturday evening that the resistance movement was determined to give a response to Israel over its recent drone incursion into Lebanon.
"The need for a response is decided," he said during a televised speech ahead of the Islamic lunar calendar month of Muharram – the 10th day of which marks the martyrdom anniversary of Imam Hussein, the third Shia Imam and Prophet Muhammad's grandson.
The Hezbollah chief added that the response was about “establishing the rules of engagement and... the logic of protection for the country. Israel must pay a price.”
On August 26, Hezbollah said Israel had sent two drones into Lebanon on a bombing mission the previous weekend.
According to the resistance movement, the first drone had fallen on a building housing Hezbollah’s media office in the suburb of Dahieh. The second drone, which appeared to have been sent by Israel to search for the first one, had crashed in an empty plot nearby after being detonated in the air, it added.
Following the drone raids, Nasrallah vowed in a televised speech that fighters of the resistance movement would counter any further violation of the Lebanese airspace by Israeli drones.
Damage caused to a Hezbollah media center in Beirut , left, purportedly by an Israeli drone, right
Unnamed official says Israel's focus is now on preventing Iranian precision missiles reaching Lebanon and Syria, casts doubt on American willingness to 'buy what Rouhani selling'
A senior Israeli security source says that the defense establishment system has shifted its strategic focus to averting the threat of precise missiles that Iran is trying to introduce into Syria and Lebanon.
"In recent days, we have attacked on several fronts. We also carried out simultaneous attacks in Syria and other arenas," the senior official said on Monday.
"There was also a certain development in Lebanon, which according to foreign publications was attributed to Israel. There was a need to take action in several arenas within a 24-hour window, and we planned accordingly."
According to the same source, Israel acted "as precisely in as many arenas as we planned, including in that possible enemy reactions. We are prepared for war but do not need it, as the event we carried out in Lebanon proved."
The source also touched on the apparently imminent rapprochement between the U.S. and Iran and the plans to hold talks on the issue of Iranian nuclear ambitions.
"We have an ongoing relationship with the Americans, and I think they have no illusions about (Iranian President Hassan) Rouhani," the source said.
"I don't see them buying what he is selling, nor (Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad) Zarif. Will they talk? Perhaps. I believe the talks will take place in a different way from the previous talks, which is what I am hearing from everyone at all levels."
Strategic change
Israel has redefined its priorities regarding the threats it currently faces. The Iranian nuclear threat is still one of the top priorities of the defense establishment, and in third place is the Iranian attempt to entrench itself in the region, in Syria, Lebanon, Iraq and Yemen.
The senior security source said in a conversation with military reporters that "in light of developments and situation assessments, it was decided three months ago that the precision missile project would be given high priority because of the immediate danger it poses. The military echelons were informed of this decision."
He added: "We cannot afford to be surrounded by thousands of precision missiles that could land and harm the State of Israel."
The senior official noted that in the past six months, the issue has been discussed by the cabinet with the upper echelons of the defense establishment, and the ensuing guidelines were passed on to various officials and the IDF.
"Our three targets have one address - Iran," the source said.
"The address for two of the three threats is the same - the commander of the Quds Force of the Revolutionary Guard, Qasem Suleimani," the source said, but declined to answer a question on how Israel would deal with Suleimani.
In recent months, the defense establishment has been making efforts in the diplomatic and defense spheres to prevent the threats coming from Tehran.
"We operate in all spheres – on the diplomatic, security, counterterrorism and intelligence levels," the official said.
"What you see in practice is just the tip of the iceberg. There are ma y activities, most of which are connected to the IDF and the Mossad (external security service), for dealing with these issues.
"We work with a combination of determination and responsibility from a complete strategic perspective. It is the political level that determines which threats the State of Israel faces, and the military accepts missions according to priority."
Nasrallah asked for a ceasefire
The security source also touched on the IDF strikes in southern Lebanon on Sunday after Hezbollah fired anti-tank missiles across the border, saying that three countries - France, Egypt and the United States – asking Israel to bring an end the incident.
Hezbollah leader Hassan "Nasrallah via (Lebanese PM Saad) Hariri appealed to other countries that then asked Israel to end the incident. This has to be said because the man in the shelter is continuing to give speeches, and he obviously just wanted to come out of this with some respect.
"From my perspective, it does not bother me as long as Israel advances its objectives. Even Hariri understands that his country is under threat if Nasrallah continues to operate from Lebanese territory. We are exploring our options and will make decisions based on developments. We are dealing with all arenas and achieving our goals."
The official noted that the Russians had not intervened in recent events in Lebanon, and received updates throughout the incident.
"I had a conversation with French President (Emmanuel) Macron, and told him that inviting Iranian Foreign Minister Zarif to the (G7) conference in France on the day Iran conducts simultaneous attacks against us – and where he was embraced - highlights the absurdity of the European attitude toward Iran," the source said.
Regarding the relationship and coordination between Israel and the U.S. after an attack in Iraq attributed by foreign outlets to Israel, the source said: Israel is in constant contact with Americans, almost on a daily basis."
There are talks with Secretary of State (Mike) Pompeo on the diplomatic and security levels all the time. We are coordinating with them both on the diplomatic and military levels."
Unnamed official says Israel's focus is now on preventing Iranian precision missiles reaching Lebanon and Syria, casts doubt on American willingness to 'buy what Rouhani selling'
A senior Israeli security source says that the defense establishment system has shifted its strategic focus to averting the threat of precise missiles that Iran is trying to introduce into Syria and Lebanon.
"In recent days, we have attacked on several fronts. We also carried out simultaneous attacks in Syria and other arenas," the senior official said on Monday.
"There was also a certain development in Lebanon, which according to foreign publications was attributed to Israel. There was a need to take action in several arenas within a 24-hour window, and we planned accordingly."
According to the same source, Israel acted "as precisely in as many arenas as we planned, including in that possible enemy reactions. We are prepared for war but do not need it, as the event we carried out in Lebanon proved."
The source also touched on the apparently imminent rapprochement between the U.S. and Iran and the plans to hold talks on the issue of Iranian nuclear ambitions.
"We have an ongoing relationship with the Americans, and I think they have no illusions about (Iranian President Hassan) Rouhani," the source said.
"I don't see them buying what he is selling, nor (Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad) Zarif. Will they talk? Perhaps. I believe the talks will take place in a different way from the previous talks, which is what I am hearing from everyone at all levels."
Strategic change
Israel has redefined its priorities regarding the threats it currently faces. The Iranian nuclear threat is still one of the top priorities of the defense establishment, and in third place is the Iranian attempt to entrench itself in the region, in Syria, Lebanon, Iraq and Yemen.
The senior security source said in a conversation with military reporters that "in light of developments and situation assessments, it was decided three months ago that the precision missile project would be given high priority because of the immediate danger it poses. The military echelons were informed of this decision."
He added: "We cannot afford to be surrounded by thousands of precision missiles that could land and harm the State of Israel."
The senior official noted that in the past six months, the issue has been discussed by the cabinet with the upper echelons of the defense establishment, and the ensuing guidelines were passed on to various officials and the IDF.
"Our three targets have one address - Iran," the source said.
"The address for two of the three threats is the same - the commander of the Quds Force of the Revolutionary Guard, Qasem Suleimani," the source said, but declined to answer a question on how Israel would deal with Suleimani.
In recent months, the defense establishment has been making efforts in the diplomatic and defense spheres to prevent the threats coming from Tehran.
"We operate in all spheres – on the diplomatic, security, counterterrorism and intelligence levels," the official said.
"What you see in practice is just the tip of the iceberg. There are ma y activities, most of which are connected to the IDF and the Mossad (external security service), for dealing with these issues.
"We work with a combination of determination and responsibility from a complete strategic perspective. It is the political level that determines which threats the State of Israel faces, and the military accepts missions according to priority."
Nasrallah asked for a ceasefire
The security source also touched on the IDF strikes in southern Lebanon on Sunday after Hezbollah fired anti-tank missiles across the border, saying that three countries - France, Egypt and the United States – asking Israel to bring an end the incident.
Hezbollah leader Hassan "Nasrallah via (Lebanese PM Saad) Hariri appealed to other countries that then asked Israel to end the incident. This has to be said because the man in the shelter is continuing to give speeches, and he obviously just wanted to come out of this with some respect.
"From my perspective, it does not bother me as long as Israel advances its objectives. Even Hariri understands that his country is under threat if Nasrallah continues to operate from Lebanese territory. We are exploring our options and will make decisions based on developments. We are dealing with all arenas and achieving our goals."
The official noted that the Russians had not intervened in recent events in Lebanon, and received updates throughout the incident.
"I had a conversation with French President (Emmanuel) Macron, and told him that inviting Iranian Foreign Minister Zarif to the (G7) conference in France on the day Iran conducts simultaneous attacks against us – and where he was embraced - highlights the absurdity of the European attitude toward Iran," the source said.
Regarding the relationship and coordination between Israel and the U.S. after an attack in Iraq attributed by foreign outlets to Israel, the source said: Israel is in constant contact with Americans, almost on a daily basis."
There are talks with Secretary of State (Mike) Pompeo on the diplomatic and security levels all the time. We are coordinating with them both on the diplomatic and military levels."
