World urges restraint after Iran strikes Israel

World urges restraint after Iran strikes Israel
People stand on top of the remains of an Iranian missile in the Negev desert near Arad, on Oct. 2, 2024, in the aftermath of an Iranian missile attack on Israel. (AFP)
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Updated 17 sec ago
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World urges restraint after Iran strikes Israel

World urges restraint after Iran strikes Israel
  • “The Chinese side calls on the international community … to truly play a constructive role and prevent the situation from further deteriorating,” said a foreign ministry spokesman
  • “This situation is developing by the most worrying scenario,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said

PARIS: World leaders called on Iran and Israel to step back from the brink after Tehran fired a barrage of rockets at its arch-rival.
Tehran said Tuesday’s attack — launched as Israel said it was mounting a ground offensive against Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon — was in response to the killings of Iran-backed militant leaders.
“The Chinese side calls on the international community, especially major influential powers, to truly play a constructive role and prevent the situation from further deteriorating,” said a foreign ministry spokesman in a statement published online.
“This situation is developing by the most worrying scenario,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday.
“We call all sides toward restraint ... and we condemn any acts that could lead to the death of the civilian population.”
Hours earlier, Russia’s foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova denounced what she said was the “complete failure” of US President Joe Biden’s approach.
“The White House’s incomprehensible statements demonstrate its complete helplessness in resolving crises,” she posted on Telegram.
Pope Francis called for a day of prayer for peace on October 7, the anniversary of Hamas’ attack on Israel.
Biden ordered the US military to “aid Israel’s defense against Iranian attacks and shoot down missiles that are targeting Israel.”
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the attack was “totally unacceptable.”
“Initial reports suggest that Israel, with the active support of the United States and other partners, effectively defeated this attack,” Blinken said.
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the “broadening conflict in the Middle East.”
With Israel’s conflict with Hezbollah broadening alongside its ongoing war with Palestinian Hamas militants in Gaza, Guterres slammed “escalation after escalation” in the region.
“This must stop. We absolutely need a ceasefire.”
Israel vowed to retaliate in the wake of Iran’s attack.
“This attack will have consequences. We have plans, and we will operate at the place and time we decide,” said Israeli military spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari.
On Wednesday, it declared Guterres “persona non grata,” banning the UN chief from entering the country for failing to condemn Iran’s missile attack on Israel.
Hamas said the attack was retaliation for killings including Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut and Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran.
Hamas “blesses the heroic rocket launches carried out by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in Iran against wide areas of our occupied lands,” adding it was “in revenge for the blood of our heroic martyrs.”
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez condemned the Iranian strikes and called for an end to the “spiral of violence” blighting the Middle East.
Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares said Madrid was issuing “a new call to all the actors, obviously including Israel, to show restraint and not escalation.”
French President Emmanuel Macron condemned Iran’s attacks against Israel “in the strongest possible terms,” adding that France had “mobilized” its military resources in the Middle East to counter Tehran.
Macron also demanded that “Hezbollah cease its terrorist actions against Israel and its population,” while asking Israel to “put an end to their military operations as soon as possible.”
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned Iran’s attack “in the strongest terms.”
During a call with his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu, Starmer also “expressed the UK’s steadfast commitment to Israeli security and the protection of civilians.”
Japan’s new Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said missile attacks by Iran on Israel were “unacceptable.”
“We will condemn this strongly. But at the same time, we would like to cooperate (with the United States) to defuse the situation and prevent it from escalating into a full-on war,” he said.


Daesh ambush kills four Iraqi soldiers near Kirkuk

Updated 23 sec ago
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Daesh ambush kills four Iraqi soldiers near Kirkuk

Daesh ambush kills four Iraqi soldiers near Kirkuk
BAGHDAD: Four Iraqi soldiers were killed and three injured on Wednesday in an ambush by Daesh militants on an army convoy near the northern oil city of Kirkuk, a military statement said.
The ambush took place in a rural area southwest of Kirkuk that remains a hotbed of activity for militant cells years after Iraq declared final victory over the jihadist group in 2017.
After the defeat of Daesh as a force able to hold swathes of territory, remnants switched to hit-and-run attacks on government forces in different areas of Iraq.
Two military officials said security forces were heading to the area around 45 km (28 miles) southwest of Kirkuk to arrest a suspected militant when they came under sniper and automatic weapons fire.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but the military statement blamed it on Daesh militants.

200 British citizens to be evacuated from Beirut on Wednesday, but many more will be left behind

Dust and smoke billow from the site of an overnight Israeli airstrike in Beirut’s southern suburb of Shayyah on October 2, 2024.
Dust and smoke billow from the site of an overnight Israeli airstrike in Beirut’s southern suburb of Shayyah on October 2, 2024.
Updated 2 min 55 sec ago
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200 British citizens to be evacuated from Beirut on Wednesday, but many more will be left behind

Dust and smoke billow from the site of an overnight Israeli airstrike in Beirut’s southern suburb of Shayyah on October 2, 2024.
  • While the government will pay to charter the flight, those wanting to get on it are expected to pay a fee of £350 ($465) per person

LONDON: Around 200 British citizens are to be evacuated from Beirut on a flight chartered by the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office on Wednesday, The Times reported.

The evacuation comes after a sharp escalation in the conflict between Israel and the Lebanese movement Hezbollah, coupled with Iran’s missile attack on Israel on Tuesday.

It is understood that there is not enough room on the flight for everyone who has expressed an interest in leaving the country, meaning hundreds of eligible Brits could be left behind as the situation deteriorates.

The Foreign Office has not ruled out taking on more flights “while the airport stays open,” The Times said, citing a government source.

Although Israel has avoided targets that could contain foreign citizens fleeing Lebanon, British diplomats are nervous about the risks involved in a mission to fly UK citizens to safety. Areas within a few hundred meters of the airport have already been bombed.

People who wish to be evacuated on Wednesday’s flight are required to make their own way to the airport, and vulnerable British citizens and their spouses, partners, and children under 18 are being prioritized.

A Lebanese local explained that reaching the airport was risky: “The roads leading to the airport are dangerous because you never know where they (Israel) are going to bomb. You don’t know where the target is or even if someone they want to kill is on the road.”

In order to get to the airport, travelers would have to pass by places such as the Beirut suburb of Dahiyeh, the target of dozens of Israeli attacks in recent days and where Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was killed on Friday, the local said.

While the government will pay to charter the flight, those wanting to get on it are expected to pay a fee of £350 ($465) per person.

Some of those returning on Wednesday have a place booked on flights leaving the country over the weekend, but they fear that it will be too late if they wait until then.

The Foreign Office is considering other ways to bring UK nationals to safety as there are no commercial flights out of the country available for the next few days. More aircraft could be chartered as a result.

British Foreign Secretary David Lammy has said the situation in Lebanon “is volatile and has potential to deteriorate quickly.

“That’s why the UK government is chartering a flight to help those wanting to leave. It is vital that you leave now as further evacuation may not be guaranteed,” he warned British citizens in the country.


Lebanon army says Israeli drone attack wounds soldier

Lebanon army says Israeli drone attack wounds soldier
Updated 6 min 30 sec ago
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Lebanon army says Israeli drone attack wounds soldier

Lebanon army says Israeli drone attack wounds soldier
  • An army unit was working to open the Marjayoun-Hasbaya road

BEIRUT: Lebanon’s army said an Israeli drone wounded one of its soldiers Wednesday in an attack when the unit was working in the country’s south, as Israel battles militant group Hezbollah.
“A soldier was wounded due to an attack by an Israeli enemy drone as an army unit was working to open the Marjayoun-Hasbaya road,” the Lebanese army said on X.


Pride and fear in Iran after missile attack on Israel

Pride and fear in Iran after missile attack on Israel
Updated 02 October 2024
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Pride and fear in Iran after missile attack on Israel

Pride and fear in Iran after missile attack on Israel
  • Analysts see the Iranian missile strike as a consequence of a string of setbacks suffered by Tehran
  • Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is due to deliver a rare speech at Friday prayers this week

TEHRAN: On the streets of Tehran, a small crowd celebrated Iran’s missile attack on Israel while others are worried about the consequences of the Islamic Republic’s boldest move yet in a year of escalating Middle East conflict.
Local media carried footage of what Iran said were 200 missiles as they were fired toward Israel on Tuesday evening, while state television played upbeat music over the images and showed crowds of a few hundred people celebrating the attacks in the capital and other cities across the country.
Some carried the yellow flag of Hezbollah, Iran’s ally in Lebanon, as well as portraits of its chief Hassan Nasrallah who was killed in an Israeli air strike last week.
Speaking at a gathering in Palestine Square in central Tehran late Tuesday, Hedyeh Gholizadeh, 29, said she felt “a sense of pride” by Iran’s retaliation, which analysts said reflected pressure on the country to react to a series of Israeli-inflicted humiliations.
“We are ready to accept all the consequences, whatever they may be, and we are ready to pay the penalty and we have no fear,” said Gholizadeh.
There was little sign of the previous evening’s celebrations on Wednesday morning in Tehran, with traffic humming along as usual while cafes and restaurants buzzed with customers.
Israel’s vow to avenge the missile attacks, backed by similar threats from the United States, has unsettled some people who fear the country stumbling into a full-blown war through tit-for-tat reactions.
“I am really worried because if Israel wants to take retaliatory measures, it will lead to an expansion of the war,” said Mansour Firouzabadi, a 45-year-old nurse in Tehran. “Everyone is worried about it.”
Analysts see the Iranian missile strike as a consequence of a string of setbacks suffered by Tehran and its strategy of building up allies across the region in Lebanon, Iraq, Yemen, Syria and the Palestinian territories.
Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah chief Nasrallah was killed alongside Iranian Revolutionary Guards commander Abbas Nilforoushan, while Palestinian Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran on July 31.
Ali Vaez from the International Crisis Group, a Brussels-based think-tank, said Iran took “a calculated risk in April” when it fired missiles and drones at Israel, most of which were intercepted, in its first ever direct attack.
The barrage was ordered after an Israeli air strike on Iran’s consulate in the Syrian capital Damascus which killed two Iranian generals.
“Now, with an even bolder move (on Tuesday), the regime’s actions reflect the deepening challenges it faces as its most critical partners have been weakened on multiple fronts,” Vaez said.
“Failing to respond might have further eroded its credibility with these allies, giving the impression that Tehran was content to remain passive,” he said.
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is due to deliver a rare speech at Friday prayers this week, according to local media, during which he is widely expected to set the tone for the way forward.
The last time Khamenei led Friday prayers was after Iran launched ballistic missiles on air bases of US forces in Iraq following the 2020 killing of revered Revolutionary Guards commander Qasem Soleimani in a US drone strike near the Iraqi capital, Baghdad.
Speaking at a gathering of Iranian students on Wednesday, Khamenei said he was still in mourning for Nasrallah and that his death was “not a small matter.”
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Iran had refrained from responding to Haniyeh’s killing in Tehran during his inauguration in July, fearing that it could derail US-backed efforts for a ceasefire in the Gaza war.
But the promises the United States and its allies of a “ceasefire in exchange for Iran’s non-reaction to Haniyeh’s killing were completely false,” he said on Sunday.
Israel’s military campaign continues there even as it steps up its war with Hezbollah in neighboring Lebanon.
Following Tuesday’s attack by Iran, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Tehran “made a big mistake tonight and will pay for it,” while the United States warned of “severe consequences.”
Former Israeli prime minister Naftali Bennett called on Wednesday for a decisive strike to destroy Iran’s nuclear facilities.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps meanwhile threatened a “crushing attack” if Israel responded, and warned against any direct military intervention in support of Israel.
Vaez from the International Crisis Group says while Tehran has signalled “the chapter is closed ... the reality is far from that.”
“The final word on this conflict lies, not with Iran, but with Israel and the United States,” he said.
“And if the latest developments in Gaza, Lebanon, and even Yemen’s Houthi movements are any indication, this confrontation is far from over.”


Kremlin calls for restraint in Middle East after Iranian attack on Israel

Kremlin calls for restraint in Middle East after Iranian attack on Israel
Updated 02 October 2024
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Kremlin calls for restraint in Middle East after Iranian attack on Israel

Kremlin calls for restraint in Middle East after Iranian attack on Israel
  • Kremlin spokesman: Moscow condemns any action that caused the death of civilians

MOSCOW: The Kremlin on Wednesday said the situation in the Middle East was developing in an alarming direction and called on all sides to exercise restraint.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Russia had contacts with all sides in the region and said Moscow condemned any action that caused the death of civilians.
The Israeli military said on Wednesday that regular infantry and armored units were joining ground operations in southern Lebanon, stepping up pressure on Hezbollah, as Israel prepared to retaliate against a barrage of Iranian missile strikes.
“This situation is developing according to the most alarming scenario,” Peskov said.
“We call for restraint by all sides against the backdrop of what is happening. And of course, we condemn any actions which lead to the deaths of civilians.”
Asked what Moscow would do next and whether it would support Iran in the event of Tehran entering a full-scale conflict with Israel, Peskov said:
“We have contacts with all sides in this conflict, we continue to have these contacts and call on all sides for restraint.”