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Beirut, Lebanon. The attack resulted in the destruction of six buildings and left numerous casualties, marking one of the most significant military actions in the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. “The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) carried out a precise strike on the Central headquarters of the Hezbollah terror organisation… taking the necessary action to protect our people so that Israeli families can live in their homes, safely and securely,” IDF spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari stated in a televised address following the strike. The targeted buildings in Beirut’s Harek Hreik district have long been associated with Hezbollah’s operational base. According to several media reports, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was said to have been in the area at the time of the attack, leading to widespread speculation that he was the intended target.

Iran has accused the United States of being «complicit» in Israeli airstrikes on Gaza and Lebanon, alleging that the strikes used US-supplied bunker buster bombs on residential areas in Beirut. The US has denied any prior knowledge of the attacks. Reports indicate that the Israeli airstrikes aimed at Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, significantly damaged six buildings. Communications with Nasrallah were lost following the strikes. Nonetheless, sources close to Hezbollah and Iranian news agencies report that Nasrallah is alive, with Tehran still verifying his status. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi criticized the US at the United Nations Security Council, saying, «Just this morning, the Israeli regime used several 5,000-pound bunker busters that had been gifted to them by the United States to hit residential areas in Beirut. One cannot disregard the US complicity in the crime.»

According to Business Insider, Russia, China, North Korea and Iran have made their military ties much stronger than before. It is a cause of concern for the US military and their allies all over the world. Both China and Russia have been holding large scale air and naval drills together. Also Read :Astronomers have detected what may be a ‘future Earth’ eight billion years from now

Erdogan did not mention Kashmir in his address at the United Nations General Assembly this year, the first time he has skipped the issue since the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019. The focus of his 35-minute speech on Tuesday was on the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where over 40,000 people have died in Israeli attacks against Hamas. After India scrapped the special status Jammu and Kashmir enjoyed under the Constitution in 2019, Erdogan has referred to Kashmir every year in his address to world leaders at the UNGA session here, while advocating talks between New Delhi and Islamabad. However, Pakistan's Foreign Ministry insisted that Turkiye's stance on the Kashmir issue remains unchanged, The Dawn newspaper reported.

trade unions filed a complaint on Friday against Israel with the International Labour Organization, alleging that its treatment of Palestinian workers since the Gaza war began had breached a global treaty. Criticism of Israel's treatment of Palestinian workers, under scrutiny for decades, has increased at the Geneva-based U.N. labour body since the war started on Oct. 7. The complaint summarised in a statement sent to journalists focuses on Israel's exclusion of some 200,000 Palestinian migrant workers, which Israel justifies on security grounds. It claims unpaid wages and other compensation for them and other Palestinian workers which the unions say could amount to billions of dollars.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. A year ago, Israel suffered its worst-ever intelligence failure when Hamas launched a surprise attack, killing 1,200 people and taking around 250 hostages. Today, a wave of strikes against Hezbollah has Israel’s long-vaunted spies back on the front foot.

An expert witness testifying for Google says an antitrust case brought against the tech giant drastically underestimates the company's competition

Hezbollah, defying calls from allies including the US for a halt in fighting. Israeli warplanes bombarded Lebanon, including a strike on the southern suburbs of Beirut that shook the capital. On its own side of the border, the Israeli army staged an exercise simulating a ground invasion. The relentless pressure on Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon, including intense airstrikes and assassinations of some of its senior commanders, raised concern that of a wider war spreading across the region. The military, which has vowed to secure Israel's northern border and return thousands of Israeli citizens to communities there, said the exercise of its 7th brigade took place a few kilometres from the Lebanese border.

Israel Defense Force (IDF) Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi has warned Hezbollah that a ground offensive is imminent, stating that Israeli soldiers' "military boots will enter enemy territory," Times of Israel reported. Halevi's remarks came after Hezbollah fired a missile at central Israel on early Wednesday and Israel responded with airstrikes, which have killed 569 people and wounded 1,835 others, Al Jazeera reported. During a drill simulating the invasion, Halevi addressed soldiers of the 7th Armored Brigade, as per Times of Israel.

France and other allies jointly called Wednesday for an immediate 21-day cease-fire to allow for negotiations in the escalating conflict between Israel and Hezbollah that has killed more than 600 people in Lebanon in recent days. The joint statement, negotiated on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly in New York, says the recent fighting is «intolerable and presents an unacceptable risk of a broader regional escalation.» «We call for an immediate 21-day cease-fire across the Lebanon-Israel border to provide space for diplomacy,» the statement said. «We call on all parties, including the governments of Israel and Lebanon, to endorse the temporary cease-fire immediately.»

Jhumpa Lahiri has declined to accept an award from the Noguchi Museum in Queens in protest after it fired three employees who had worn kaffiyehs in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. «Jhumpa Lahiri has chosen to withdraw her acceptance of the 2024 Isamu Noguchi Award in response to our updated dress code policy,» the museum said in a statement on Wednesday. «We respect her perspective and understand that this policy may or may not align with everyone's views,» The New York Times cited the statement as saying of Lahiri. «We remain committed to our core mission of advancing the understanding and appreciation of Isamu Noguchi's art and legacy while upholding our values of inclusivity and openness.»

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Hezbollah is dealing with some disagreement among its ranks over how to respond to a series of devastating attacks on the Lebanese militant group, according to people familiar with the group’s deliberations. With no good options available, the group faces one of the most consequential decisions in its four-decade history.

Australia has urged an estimated 15,000 of its citizens living in Lebanon to leave, flagging a risk Beirut airport may close and the difficulty of evacuating large numbers if the situation worsens. Israel widened its airstrikes in Lebanon on Wednesday and at least 72 people were killed, and Israel's military chief said a ground assault was possible. Britain is moving troops to Cyprus, joining two Royal Navy ships already there, to be in a position to help evacuate nationals trapped in Lebanon. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said his government had made contingency plans that could include evacuations by water, but declined to give details.

rockets fired by Hezbollah pounded Kiryat Shmona, the northernmost Israeli city near the border with Lebanon. Refrigerators stored at the site were charred and mangled, a small sign of the damage Hezbollah has inflicted on northern Israel since the Lebanese militant group and the Israeli military had escalated their attacks against each other over the past week. «Kiryat Shmona has turned into Hezbollah's playground,» said Guy Hayun, 45, the security coordinator for the city over the past year.

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Indian Embassy in Beirut on Wednesday issued a safety advisory for nationals by advising them against travelling and exercise extreme caution. Embassy of India in Beirut tweets, «As a reiteration of the Advisory issued on 1 August 2024 and in view of the recent developments and escalations in the region, Indian nationals are strongly advised against travelling to Lebanon till further notice. All Indian nationals already in Lebanon are also strongly advised to leave Lebanon. Those who remain for any reason are advised to exercise extreme caution, restrict their movements and remain in contact with the Embassy of India in Beirut...»

Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday questioned the Centre's 'Make in India' project and alleged that GST and demonetisation were used as weapons to clear roads for business tycoons like Adani and Ambani. Addressing an election rally in support of Congress-National Conference (NC) alliance candidates from 11 assembly segments of Jammu district, Gandhi accused the BJP of using central agencies like the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Income Tax (IT) to browbeat opponents. The Jammu district along with six other districts is going to polls in the third and final phase of Jammu and Kashmir elections on October 1. «They (BJP) are talking about 'Make in India' and the defence industry but the reality is that all the contracts are going to people like Adani. An Israeli company is making weapons and Adani is pasting his label.

The US Republican presidential nominee, Donald Trump, delivered a keynote to crypto advocates at the Bitcoin 2024 conference. The former US President promised to make the United States "the crypto capital of the planet and bitcoin superpower of the world".

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. The war in West Asia has intensified. With its Gaza operations against Hamas not yet over, Israel has aimed its firepower at Hezbollah, an Iran-backed militia based in Lebanon to its north.

Antonio Guterres in recent years that the global situation is becoming intolerable and unsustainable. «We can't go on like this,» the secretary-general said in an alarming state-of-the-world address as he opened the annual high-level gathering of the U.N.'s 193 member nations. He said the world is in «an era of epic transformation» and facing challenges never seen before, with geopolitical divisions deepening, the planet heating and wars raging in the Middle East, Ukraine, Sudan and elsewhere with no clue how they will end.

Oil prices steadied on Wednesday after rising in the previous session on fading excitement for the economic stimulus in China, the world's biggest crude importer, though an industry report showing falling U.S. crude and fuel inventories supported the market. Brent crude futures gained 3 cents at $75.20 a barrel by 0004 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude lost 2 cents at $71.58 per barrel.