What we know
- The U.S. has approved the deployment of military personnel and a THAAD anti-missile battery to Israel as the region remains on high alert for possible retaliatory strikes against Iran.
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the U.N. to remove its peacekeepers from southern Lebanon today. Israeli forces have injured at least five U.N. peacekeepers in recent days, drawing international outrage.
- Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin called for a diplomatic solution to the conflict in Lebanon, according to a readout of a conversation with his Israeli counterpart, Yoav Gallant, even as Israel spoke with U.S. officials about its plans to strike Iran.
- The Israeli military bombarded southern Lebanon overnight and into this morning, destroying a market in the town of Nabatiyeh and a mosque on the border. The Israel Defense Forces say they attacked “dozens” of Hezbollah targets, including launchers and ammunition depots.
- More than 200 people have been killed as the Israeli military’s offensive in northern Gaza enters its ninth day, Gaza’s civil defense said. Humanitarian workers are reporting spiking hunger as aid convoys struggle to enter the north. The Jabaliya refugee camp and Kamal Adwan hospital remain under siege.
4 IDF soldiers killed in Hezbollah drone attack on northern Israel
The IDF said four of its soldiers were killed and seven were severely injured in the Hezbollah drone attack on northern Israel today.
Magen David Adom, Israel's emergency services, said dozens of others were injured, with three in critical condition. The IDF said all of the injured people have been taken to hospitals.
The IDF said the families of all those killed and injured have been notified.
Hezbollah launched a drone that hit an army base next to Binyamina, according to Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, an IDF spokesperson.
"The results are severe, and there are casualties," Hagari said. "At this point, we have full operational control of the situation."
He added that all soldiers on the base were told to call their families to tell them they are safe.
"We are managing the event, and we will investigate how a UAV struck the base without warning," Hagari said, adding that the threat of a UAV strike is "something we have been facing since the beginning of the war."
"We need to provide better protection, and we will learn from this event, improve and move forward," Hagari said. "Our duty is to better protect our soldiers and the citizens of Israel."
UNICEF director: 'The deaths and suffering of children are shameful'
UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell warned of the effects the escalation of violence in the occupied Palestinian territories, Lebanon and Israel have on children's lives.
"Children do not start wars and they have no power to end them, yet their lives are devastated by conflict," Russell said in a statement. "Tens of thousands of children have died. Thousands more are in captivity, displaced, orphaned, out of school, and suffer trauma from violence and war."
Russell said that all parties are obligated to protect civilians, aid workers and civilian infrastructure, including schools and hospitals, but that those obligations are "flagrantly disregarded."
"The deaths and suffering of children are shameful," she said. "The daily bloodshed and horror for children are an affront to the most fundamental values of humanity."
IDF says it intercepted launches from Lebanon toward northern Israel
The IDF said it intercepted about five projectiles launches tonight from Lebanon toward the Haifa Bay area in northern Israel.
Sirens sounded in Haifa and surrounding communities as the Israeli air force intercepted the launches, the IDF said.
It's not clear whether there were any injuries.
At least 22 killed in Israeli attack on Gaza school, Gaza Government Media Office says
At least 22 people were killed in an Israeli attack on the Al-Mufti School in the Nuseirat refugee camp in Gaza, according to the Gaza's government media office.
The victims included 15 children and women, the media office said. Around 80 people were injured.
The media office said the Israeli army knew the Al-Mufti School sheltered "thousands of displaced children and women."
"This new crime comes in conjunction with the difficult health situation in the central governorate, which is currently inhabited by more than one million people," it said.
UNIFIL peacekeepers to remain in Lebanon, U.N. secretary-general says
UNIFIL peacekeepers will "remain in all positions" despite attacks by Israel that have injured at least five of them in recent days, according to Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for Secretary-General António Guterres.
Dujarric issued the statement after Netanyahu urged the U.N.’s peacekeeping forces to leave southern Lebanon, saying they are providing a “human shield” to Hezbollah.
Dujarric said that the U.N. flag will continue to fly in southern Lebanon and that the safety of U.N. personnel must be guaranteed and respected at all times.
"The Secretary-General reiterates that UNIFIL personnel and its premises must never be targeted," Dujarric said. "Attacks against peacekeepers are in breach of international law, including international humanitarian law. They may constitute a war crime."
Dujarric also mentioned a "deeply worrying" incident earlier today when IDF tanks “deliberately breached” the doors of a U.N. position. UNIFIL has asked the IDF for an explanation of the violation, which injured peacekeepers, and the IDF disputed the account, saying no danger was posed to the peacekeepers.
"The mission is taking all possible measures to ensure the protection of its peacekeepers," Dujarric said. "UNIFIL’s role and its presence in southern Lebanon is mandated by the UN Security Council. In this context, UNIFIL is committed to preserving its capacity to support a diplomatic solution based on resolution 1701, which is the only possible way forward."
Secret Hamas documents provide a detailed record of planning for the Oct. 7 attacks, as well as efforts to recruit Hezbollah and Iran to join the assault.
Video shows immense destruction of Nabatiyeh in southern Lebanon
The Israeli military bombarded southern Lebanon, reducing buildings to rubble and destroying a market in the town of Nabatiyeh, video shows.
Nestled in Nabatiyeh's downtown commercial district, the old souk, or market, dates to the Ottoman Empire and was an important economic hub for civilians in the region. The marketplace, which once drew in farmers and vendors who sold a variety of goods, from spices to clothes, now lies in ruins.
Hezbollah claims credit for attack on northern Israel
Hezbollah claimed responsibility for an attack on Binyamina in northern Israel tonight that Israeli rescue services said injured 60 people, some critically.
Hezbollah said it launched "a squadron of attack drones on a training camp for the 'Golani Brigade'" in the town south of Haifa in retaliation for Israeli attacks on Lebanon.
"The Islamic Resistance will remain present and ready to defend our country and our proud and oppressed people will not hesitate to carry out its duty in deterring the enemy," the group said in a statement.
U.S. authorizes deployment of military personnel to Israel
In addition to sending an anti-missile system, the U.S. has also authorized the deployment of military personnel to Israel to help bolster the country's defense after attacks from Iran, according to the Pentagon press secretary, Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder.
The U.S. actions underscore its "ironclad commitment to the defense of Israel, and to defend Americans in Israel, from any further ballistic missile attacks by Iran," Ryder said.
President Joe Biden directed the military to deploy a THAAD battery to the Middle East last year after the Oct. 7 attacks to protect American troops and interests in the region. The U.S. had also deployed a THAAD battery to Israel in 2019 for training and an integrated air defense exercise.
Lebanese prime minister condemns Israel's attacks on U.N. peacekeepers
Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati condemned Israel's attacks on UNIFIL, which have injured at least four peacekeepers.
Mikati also called out Netanyahu for telling the U.N. to remove UNIFIL peacekeepers from Lebanon, saying it "represents a new chapter in the enemy’s approach of not complying with international legitimacy and its relevant resolutions."
"Lebanon, which condemns Netanyahu’s position and the Israeli aggression against UNIFIL, renews its commitment to international legitimacy, Resolution 1701, the role of the United Nations forces in the south and their positive cooperation with the army, and demands that the international community take a firm position to stop the Israeli aggression against Lebanon and international legitimacy as well," Mikati said in a statement.