Israel Decides Its Own Retaliation, Continues Strikes on Lebanon and Gaza

 Israel Decides Its Own Retaliation, Continues Strikes on Lebanon and Gaza

After Iran’s missile attacks, Israel prepares its response while escalating assaults in Gaza and Lebanon.

 

Netanyahu's anger grows as he prepares Israel's response to escalating attacks. Source : Kompas.com 

   Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office declared that Israel would decide for itself how to respond to the barrage of 180 missiles launched from Iran earlier this month. Although advice from the U.S. will be considered, Netanyahu stressed that the final decision lies solely with Israel. This statement came after media reports surfaced, suggesting that Netanyahu assured U.S. President Joe Biden that Israel wouldn’t target nuclear or oil-related facilities in Iran before the upcoming U.S. elections.

Source : unair.ac.id

        On October 15, 2024, Israel intensified its airstrikes across Lebanon and Gaza. The situation in Gaza is particularly heart-wrenching, with at least 50 Palestinians killed in airstrikes as Israeli forces battled with Hamas and other militant groups in the northern part of the region. In Jabaliya, a densely populated area of northern Gaza, tens of thousands of civilians are now trapped amid Israeli military operations. The humanitarian crisis worsens daily, with casualties climbing due to relentless shelling, bombs, and missiles. Israel has accused Hamas of using civilians as human shields, although Hamas vehemently denies these claims.

        In Lebanon, Israeli forces launched attacks in the eastern region a day after Netanyahu vowed to crush Hezbollah throughout Lebanon, including Beirut. Airstrikes targeted the Bekaa Valley in the east, crippling a hospital in the city of Baalbek. Lebanon's National News Agency described these strikes as the most violent since the 2006 Israel-Lebanon war.

The horrifying reality in Jabaliya, northern Gaza, where thousands of civilians are trapped in the ongoing conflict. Source : news.detik.com

I was struck by the words of a local resident, Nidal al-Solh, who shared with AFP, “This is a night of violence in Baalbek unlike anything we’ve seen since 2006.” The destruction is palpable, and Israeli strikes have also hit Hezbollah strongholds in other parts of Lebanon, including a predominantly Christian village in the north where at least 21 people were killed on Monday.

    Aid officials have reported that one-quarter of Lebanon is now under Israeli evacuation orders. Thousands of civilians are fleeing their homes with nothing but the clothes on their backs. The scale of this crisis is alarming. As Rema Jamous Imseis, director of the UN refugee agency for the Middle East, noted, “People are heeding the call to evacuate, and they’re leaving without taking anything.”

    Israel’s declared objective is to pressure Hezbollah and secure its northern border, aiming to ensure the safe return of tens of thousands of Israelis displaced by rocket fire over the past year.

by : Selvi Novita