Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah on Thursday blamed Israel for the deadly attacks targeting the group’s electronic devices in Lebanon, calling them a “massacre” that crossed a “red line”. In his first speech since the attacks, Nasrallah vowed not to give up “the resistance”. Israeli jets carried out sonic booms over Beirut during the Hezbollah leader’s much-anticipated speech. The Israeli military also launched major strikes in southern Lebanon shortly before his address, sparking fears of a regional escalation despite international calls for calm. Read FRANCE 24's liveblog to see how all the day's events unfolded.
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Summary:
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Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah on Thursday acknowledged that his group suffered an "unprecedented blow" with the attacks targeting his group's electronic devices. But he vowed to keep up daily strikes on Israel in his first speech since this weeks attacks in Lebanon.
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It is widely believed that Israel orchestrated the explosive attacks targeting Hezbollah but the blasts have also killed civilians, including two children. Explosions on Tuesday targeting pagers killed 12 people and exploding walkie-talkies and other electronics on Wednesday killed 25 people, taking the total death toll to 37, according to Lebanese health ministry figures. More than 2,930 people were wounded over two days of attacks.
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Israel and Hezbollah exchanged fire Thursday, with Israeli jets bombing southern Lebanon while Hezbollah fired a missile and drone barrage into northern Israel.
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Two Israeli soldiers were killed in combat Thursday near Israel's northern border with Lebanon, said the Israeli military.
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Japanese firm Icom said that it stopped producing the model of two-way radios reportedly used in Wednesday's blasts in Lebanon around 10 years ago. The company said it last exported the devices overseas, including to the Middle East, in 2014.
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At least 41,252 Palestinians have been killed and 95,497 wounded in Israel's war in Gaza, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run enclave. The Hamas-led October 7 attacks on Israel resulted in the deaths of more than 1,190 people, mostly civilians, according to official Israeli figures. Some 250 people were taken hostage, with about 120 remaining in Gaza. Many have been declared dead by Israeli authorities.
Yesterday's key developments:
- Communication devices used by Lebanon's armed group Hezbollah detonated in the late afternoon across the country's south and in the southern suburbs of the capital Beirut, killing at least 20 people and wounding 450, according to the Lebanese health ministry.
- Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant declared the start of a "new phase" of the war as the Israeli army turns its attention to the northern front with Lebanon.
- US Secretary of State Antony Blinken denied reports that the US had any knowledge or involvement in the Hezbollah pager attack. Blinken was in Egypt Wednesday on his 10th trip to the Middle East to try to secure a Gaza ceasefire deal.
Gaza’s health ministry collects data from the enclave’s hospitals and the Palestinian Red Crescent. For more on the health ministry’s casualty figures, click here.
(FRANCE 24 with AP, AFP, Reuters)
