Israeli military apologises after killing three Lebanese soldiers
The Israeli military has apologised after killing three Lebanese soldiers in a strike in southern Lebanon.
The country’s military said its troops believed they were targeting a vehicle belonging to Hezbollah fighters instead.
In a statement, it added that it was not battling the country’s military – but the Iranian-backed militant group instead.
This comes after Israel bombed dozens of bank branches in Lebanon earlier today (see our 6.45am post).
Israel breaks up Iranian spy network – arresting seven
Israel’s security services say they have broken up a spy ring that was gathering information on behalf of Iran.
Seven Israeli citizens from the country’s north, including the city of Haifa, were arrested after an investigation by Shin Bet and police.
The security breach was said to be among the most serious ever seen by Israel.
“The assessment is that the activity of the members of the ring has caused security damage to the security of the state,” a senior source with Shin Bet told Reuters.
The suspects, two of whom were described as minors, were said to have been tasked by Iranian agents with gathering intelligence across Israel.
Targets included a power plant in Hadera, as well as Israel’s Iron Dome anti-missile batteries, the statement said.
The suspects were said to have been paid hundreds of thousands of dollars, part of which was processed in cryptocurrency.
Israeli colonel killed in Gaza named by IDF
Yesterday, we reported that an Israeli colonel had been killed in fighting in northern Gaza.
His identity has since been revealed by the Israel Defence Forces to be Colonel Eshan Dasqa.
The 41-year-old died when he was hit by an explosion after leaving his tank to walk to an observation point near the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza.
The site had been prepared with explosives, which killed Col Daqsa on the spot and wounded three other officers, the IDF said.
In a statement, Benjamin Netanyahu said Col Dasqa “was a hero of Israel, a warrior and a commander”.
Col Dasqa is among the highest-ranking IDF soldiers to have been killed since the start of Israel’s war with Hamas last October.
Watch: Humanitarian aid enters Gaza
As we reported earlier, more humanitarian aid has entered Gaza following international calls on Israel for supplies to increase (see 9.15 post).
Israel’s military said it allowed 50 trucks carrying humanitarian aid from Jordan to enter northern Gaza.
The trucks were filmed at the Erez crossing driving in the direction of Gaza during a press tour organised by the Israeli government.
Israeli troops ‘burn down school’ in Gaza
Israeli forces blew up homes and besieged schools and shelters for displaced people today as they deepened their operations in northern Gaza, according to Reuters.
Medics at a nearby hospital in Jabalia told the news agency that Israeli troops stormed a school, detained the men inside and set the facility ablaze.
The fire reached hospital generators and caused a power outage, they added.
Israeli forces have carried out operations in the densely populated Jabalia refugee camp for weeks, saying Hamas uses the area as a base.
The Israeli military said that over the past day, troops had dismantled militant infrastructure and tunnel shafts and killed fighters in the Jabalia area.
Elsewhere in the enclave, Israeli strikes killed at least five people in Rafah and four in two separate strikes in Gaza City, medics said.
Blinken heads to Middle East for talks
US secretary of state Antony Blinken is travelling to the Middle East today as Washington hopes to kickstart negotiations to bring back Israeli hostages from Gaza and end the war.
The top diplomat’s trip will start with Israel, the state department said.
“Throughout the region, Secretary Blinken will discuss the importance of bringing the war in Gaza to an end, securing the release of all hostages, and alleviating the suffering of the Palestinian people,” the state department said.
“He will continue discussions on post-conflict period planning and emphasise the need to chart a new path forward that enables Palestinians to rebuild their lives.”
Sara Netanyahu responds to drone attack on holiday home
The drone attack on Benjamin Netanyahu’s home was an attack on all of Israel, the prime minister’s wife has said.
The Israeli government said one of the prime minister’s homes was targeted on Saturday by three drones, two of which were intercepted, and that neither Mr Netanyahu nor his wife Sara were home at the time.
“Thank you from the bottom of my heart for all the concern and messages that warm the heart from the country and the world,” said Mrs Netanyahu, as reported by Israeli media.
She said the attempts to kill her husband were “an injury to all of us, to the people of Israel, to the values and the way of our people”.
“I wish all of us quiet days and security for all of us,” she added.
US working on formula to end conflict in Lebanon for good, says envoy
US envoy Amos Hochstein has given a news conference in Beirut following talks with Lebanese officials.
He says a resolution to the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel is possible, but the situation has escalated “out of control, as we feared it could”.
The US administration wants to ensure this is the last conflict in Lebanon for generations, he added.
He says both Lebanon and Israel committing to UN resolution 1701 is not enough and that the US is working to devise a formula to end the conflict once and for all.
For context: UN resolution 1701 ended the last conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006.
It calls for southern Lebanon to be free of any troops or weapons other than those of the Lebanese state.
Israeli troops find SUV-mounted rocket launcher in Lebanon
Images released by Israel’s military show an SUV-mounted rocket launcher found during operations in southern Lebanon.
According to the Israel Defence Forces, soldiers located the rocket launcher mounted on the back of a Suzuki Jimny close to a residential house.
The IDF said its troops also located and demolished a nearby weapons depot.
It said the cache had “dozens of long and short-range missiles” plus ammunition, machine guns, and explosive devices.
US seemingly in dark about Israeli attack on Iran
US defence secretary Lloyd Austin says it’s “hard to say” what Israel’s strike against Iran will look like.
Tehran launched a ballistic missile attack on Israel on 1 October, in response to the killing of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh on Iranian soil in July.
Israel has made it clear it will respond.
“It’s hard to say exactly what [Israel’s strike against Iran] will look like,” Mr Austin said today.
“At the end of the day, that’s an Israeli decision, and whether or not the Israelis believe it’s proportional and how the Iranians perceive it. I mean, those may be two different things.
“We’re going to do – continue to do – everything we can… to dial down the tensions and hopefully get both parties to begin to de-escalate. So, we’ll see what happens,” he added.