Middle East on High Alert: Israel Under Fire from Lebanon as US Bolsters Regional Military Presence

(Deutsche Welle Chinese website) Early on Saturday morning (November 2), the central Israeli town of Tira was attacked by a missile from Lebanon, injuring at least 11 people.

The attack happened after an air raid siren sounded. It was one of several attacks from Lebanon that day. Many of the missiles were intercepted by Israeli air defense systems or landed in uninhabited areas.

Israel’s Magen David Adom Emergency Service (MDA) said a building in Tirah was hit by a direct hit and 11 people were injured by shrapnel and glass fragments. Three people had moderate injuries and the rest had minor injuries.

Video from the scene showed extensive damage to the roof and upper floors of the three-storey building, as well as damage to vehicles below.

Hezbollah claims an attack on Israel

Iran-backed Hezbollah claimed responsibility for a missile fired at the Israeli army’s Unit 8200 base in Glilot, outside Tel Aviv, and claimed it had used an explosive drone to attack the Palmachim air base in central Israel), saying that they “hit the target with precision.”

The Israeli military has not confirmed that the above base was attacked.

Hezbollah said Saturday’s dawn missile attack on Grilot was in retaliation for “acts of massacre” committed by Israel. It is possible that Hezbollah’s statement is linked to the attack on Tirah, about 20 kilometers from Glilot.

A resident of Tira, Tamar Abdel Hai, said the attack was terrifying. “I call on all the leaders of the Arab world and the leaders of Israel and anyone who can help to end this war – enough is enough!”

Hezbollah also said its fighters fired rockets at several towns in northern Israel, including Dalton, Yesud HaMa’ala and Bar Yohai.

Khamenei: Israel and the United States will receive a devastating response

The attack early on Saturday morning could be just the start of a more serious retaliatory strike against Israel.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday threatened a punitive response against Israel and the United States in retaliation for Israeli airstrikes on October 26 targeting Iranian military bases and other locations.

“The enemy, whether it is the Zionist regime or the United States of America, will receive a devastating response for what they are doing to Iran, the Iranian nation and the resistance front,” Khamenei said in a video posted by Iranian state media.

1.4 million people displaced in Lebanon

Iran has directly attacked Israel twice this year, and further attacks could push more of the Middle East into wider conflict. Israel is already at war with the Iranian-backed militant group Hamas in the Gaza Strip and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Israeli strikes have weakened Hezbollah and caused heavy losses in southern Lebanon and other areas.

Israel carried out dozens of airstrikes on villages in northeastern Lebanon on Friday, with the Lebanese Ministry of Health reporting that at least 52 people were killed and dozens injured.

According to information updated by the Lebanese Ministry of Health on Friday, more than 2,897 people have been killed and 13,150 injured in Lebanon since the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah began in 2023. United Nations agencies are it is estimated that the Israeli ground attack and bombing of Lebanon displaced 1.4 million people.

About 60,000 residents of northern Israeli communities near Lebanon have also been forcibly displaced for more than a year.

The humanitarian situation in Gaza is worrying

Israel has also stepped up attacks on Hamas militants remaining in the Gaza Strip, raising concerns about the humanitarian situation of civilians still trapped there. The World Health Organization said it planned to resume polio vaccination campaigns in Gaza City on Saturday, but remote northern towns remained inaccessible as Israel tightened its siege.

According to statistics from the health department of the Hamas-controlled Gaza region, at least 43,000 people have been killed since Hamas launched a terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, triggering the Gaza War. Hamas attacks killed around 1,200 people in Israel and took around 250 hostages, of whom around 100 are still in custody.

Statistics from the Gaza Ministry of Health do not distinguish between civilians and combatants, but say more than half of the dead in the area are women and children.

The United States is strengthening its military deployment in the Middle East

The US Department of Defense issued a statement on Friday (November 1) stating that Defense Secretary Austin has ordered continued strengthening of US military deployments in the Middle East, including the deployment of additional guided missile destroyers, fighter jets, tankers and B- 52 long-range bombers.

Pentagon spokesman Major General Pat Ryder said in a statement that these troops will arrive in the region in the next few months to replace the departing USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier battle group.

Three weeks ago, US President Joe Biden said he had ordered the Pentagon to send the “THAAD” high-altitude area defense system (THAAD) and troops to Israel as part of US efforts to protect its allies and establish a defensive front. in the eastern Mediterranean.

“These actions demonstrate the flexibility of the US global defense posture and the ability of the US to deploy globally at short notice to respond to evolving national security threats,” Ryder said in the statement.

The statement also said that Defense Secretary Austin “has made it clear again that if Iran and its partners or proxies take advantage of the current situation to launch attacks on American personnel or regional interests, the United States will take all necessary measures to protect our people. “

Long-range B-52 bombers with nuclear strike capabilities have been sent to the Middle East many times to give a strong warning to Iran.

Ryder did not provide specific numbers of aircraft and ships that would be mobilized.

He said these actions are consistent with the United States’ commitment to protect citizens and troops in the Middle East, defend Israel, and achieve de-escalation through deterrence and diplomacy.

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Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon continues.

The United States and the European Union designate Hamas as a terrorist organization. The United States considers Hezbollah a terrorist organization, but the European Union only has its armed wing, not its political wing, on its list of terrorist organizations.

(Associated Press, dpa)