Middle East News: Lebanon Explosions and Israel Tensions

On the 17th, hundreds of grenades exploded in Lebanon, causing widespread injuries and killing 12 people, including two children. The Lebanese Minister of Health, Firas Abyad, reported that nearly 3,000 people were injured in the blasts.

The explosions started around 3:30 pm local time in Dahiyeh, south of Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, and in the east of the Bekaa Valley. Witnesses and residents of Dahiye told Reuters that the explosion continued for about an hour.

Hezbollah, an Islamic militant organization based in Lebanon, blamed Israel for the incident and warned of severe punishment. However, Israel has not acknowledged responsibility for the incident.

Experts believe that someone planted a small amount of explosives inside a pager, which exploded when a certain signal was received from the wireless pager. The pager was made by a company called BAC, based in Budapest, Hungary, and was licensed to a company called Gold Apollo, based in Taiwan.

US Presidential Election News: Trump and Harris on the Campaign Trail

On the 17th, Democratic Vice Presidential candidate Kamala Harris participated in a conversation invited by the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Meanwhile, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump spoke at a town hall event in Flint, Michigan.

Candidate Harris took issue with candidate Trump’s comments about Haitian immigrants, stressing that his words have consequences. She also called for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and emphasized the importance of a two-state solution in the Middle East.

Candidate Trump emphasized jobs in the auto industry, promising to create US jobs by bringing back manufacturing plants located overseas, including in China. He also warned that if he loses the presidential election, the entire auto industry will disappear within two to three years.