The Albany Gazette - Israel pounds Beirut as security cabinet to discuss ceasefire

The United States, European Union, United Nations and G7, among others, have pushed for a halt to the long-running hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, which escalated into full-scale war in late September.

But as the pressure for a truce has intensified, so too have air raids and ground battles between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah.

Waves of strikes pounded Hezbollah's south Beirut stronghold Tuesday after a flurry of Israeli evacuation warnings, AFPTV footage showed, in the heaviest raids since Israel's air campaign escalated.

Lebanon's state-run National News Agency said that "a belt of fire has encircled (the city's) southern suburbs" as raids targeted Burj al-Barajneh, Haret Hreik and Hadath.

The NNA reported that another strike in the central "Nweiri area in Beirut destroyed a four-storey building housing displaced people". It killed three people and injured 26, the health ministry said.

Rola Jaafar, who lives in the building opposite, said: "We were blown away and the walls fell on top of us."

Israel's military said it attacked 20 Hezbollah "terror targets" in the Beirut area, including command centres, "weapons storage facilities" and "components of Hezbollah's financial system".

It also said it had hit 30 targets in south Lebanon since the morning, and troops had "engaged in close-quarters combat with terrorists" and destroyed hidden weapons caches during ground raids in the Litani River region.

On the diplomatic front, Israel's Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel said the security cabinet would meet later Tuesday to discuss a ceasefire deal, though she declined "to go into details about it because of the sensitivity of the issue".

An Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said previously the cabinet would make its decision on Tuesday evening.

The United States and France have led the efforts to broker a ceasefire, and US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Monday talks had reached a "point where we're close".

G7 foreign ministers called Tuesday for an "immediate ceasefire" in Lebanon, saying in a statement: "Now is the time to conclude a diplomatic settlement."

Britain also called for a truce, saying this was "the only way to restore security" for civilians in Lebanon and northern Israel, while Germany said a deal was "within reach".

US news outlet Axios reported that the draft agreement included a 60-day transition period.

During that time, Israeli forces would withdraw, the Lebanese army would redeploy near the border and Hezbollah would move its heavy weapons north of the Litani River, Axios said.

A US-led committee would oversee implementation, with provisions allowing Israel to act against imminent threats if Lebanese forces failed to intervene.

Defence Minister Israel Katz told the UN's Lebanon envoy Tuesday that Israel would have "zero tolerance" when defending its security interests, even after a truce.

"If you do not act, we will do it, forcefully," Katz told Janine Hennis-Plasschaert during a meeting in Tel Aviv, a statement from his office said.

- Deal a 'mistake' -

Israeli media have reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is likely to endorse the US ceasefire proposal.

The war in Lebanon followed nearly a year of limited cross-border exchanges of fire initiated by Hezbollah.

The Lebanese group said it was acting in support of Hamas after the Palestinian group's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which sparked the war in Gaza.

Lebanon says at least 3,799 people have been killed in the country since October 2023, most of them in the past several weeks.

On the Israeli side, the Lebanon hostilities have killed at least 82 soldiers and 47 civilians, authorities say.

The initial exchanges forced tens of thousands of Israelis from their homes, and Israeli officials have said they are fighting so they can return safely.

Some northern residents questioned whether that would be possible under a ceasefire.

"In my opinion, it would be a serious mistake to sign an agreement as long as Hezbollah has not been completely eliminated," said Maryam Younnes, 29, a student from Maalot-Tarshiha.

Israel's far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir warned on X that a Lebanon ceasefire would be a "historic missed opportunity to eradicate Hezbollah".

But EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said Israel had "no more excuses" to refuse a deal.

- 'Scavenging among the rubble' -

Sustained efforts this year by mediators to secure a truce and hostage-release deal in the Gaza war have failed.

Qatar early this month said it was suspending its mediation role until the warring sides showed "seriousness".

In Gaza, the civil defence agency said Tuesday that 11 people were killed in nighttime Israeli strikes across the Palestinian territory.

With the violence showing no signs of stopping, Gazans were left "scavenging among the rubble" for food, said Louise Wateridge, spokeswoman for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA.

Hamas's October 7 attack on Israel last year resulted in the deaths of 1,207 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.

That toll includes a soldier wounded during Hamas's attack who died Tuesday from his injuries more than a year later, the military said.

Israel's retaliatory campaign has killed 44,249 people in Gaza, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory's health ministry that the United Nations considers reliable.

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(K.Lee--TAG)