Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that nearly one year after Hamas' attacks on Israel, his country is now fighting on seven fronts.
'Today, Israel is defending itself on seven fronts against the enemies of civilization,' he said in a video statement Saturday. He said those include Iranian-backed Hezbollah in the north, Hamas in Gaza, the Houthis in Yemen, 'terrorists' in the West Bank and the Shiite militias in Iraq and Syria.
He said he is maintaining his promise to change the balance of power in the north between Israel and Lebanon. Israel has launched nearly 9,000 attacks into Lebanon since October 8 and Hezbollah launched 1,500 attacks in that same time frame, according to the ACLED data.
Referring to Gaza, Netanyahu said that Israel has a right defend itself and that it will not forget the 101 hostages 'whom we are committed to with all our might to bring them home.' At least 41,825 people have been killed in Gaza since October 7 last year, according to Gaza's health ministry.
Netanyahu said 'shame on' French President Emmanuel Macron and other countries who call for arms embargoes against Israel. 'Rest assured, Israel will fight until the battle is won â” for our sake and for the sake of peace and security in the world,' Netanyahu added.
More than 1,400 people have been killed in Israeli strikes in Lebanon in the last month, and nearly 7,500 injured, according to the Lebanese health ministry.
Dozens of families in northern Gaza have packed up their belongings and fled once again after a warning from the Israeli military of a fresh ground operation against Hamas in the Jabalya area.
'People left their homes this morning, and they don't know where to go, carrying some simple belongings. There are no means of transportation,' Abu Alaa Asaf, a resident of Beit Lahiya, said.
The Israeli military called on Palestinian residents to evacuate areas in the north, which is home to Gaza's biggest refugee camp, before announcing that two brigades of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) encircled Jabalya to stop Hamas from rebuilding its operational capabilities.
Before this, airstrikes were carried out, hitting 'dozens of military targets,' the Israeli military said. Hamas's military wing, the Al Qassam Brigades, said Saturday it was engaged in 'fierce fights' with Israeli forces in northern Gaza.
'We heard the sounds of explosions all night long as if the war started today,' Asaf said.
Ismail Zaida, a resident of the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood in the north, saw 'hundreds' of people fleeing towards Gaza City, also in northern Gaza.
Some northern residents are refusing to move to Al-Mawasi, an Israeli-designated humanitarian zone in the south. Last month, Israel struck the area, killing at least 19 people, according to Gaza health authorities.
'People would rather die at home than get humiliated here and there,' Zaida said.
'Where do we go? From one death to another? Death is everywhere whether in the south or north,' Zaida said.
Israeli strikes across Lebanon on Saturday killed 23 people and injured 93, the Lebanese health ministry has said.
People were killed in strikes that targeted cities and villages in southern and northern Lebanon, including in Nabatieh, Bekaa, Baalbek and Mount Lebanon, the ministry said.
It's unclear if the death toll includes strikes on Beirut on Saturday night, in which buildings were heavily damaged. At least two of the blasts triggered what appeared to be secondary explosions, according to the CNN team on the ground. One of the blasts hit the road to the airport.
On Sunday morning, a large plume of smoke rose into the Lebanese capital's skyline after a strike targeted the city's suburbs. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it would not comment on what it was targeting in the area.
The US has lost respect on the world stage and has become a laughing stock, former President Donald Trump said at a campaign event in the swing state of Pennsylvania.
Trump held a rally to drum up support for his election campaign in the city of Butler on Saturday, returning to the site where he survived an assassination attempt in July.
The Republican nominee vowed to fix the US economy, combat violent crime, and crack down on illegal immigration through the southern border.
'Everything has to be the best,' he said. 'We have to have the best schools. We have to have strong borders. We don't want bad people coming in and hurting us.'
'You deserve a nation that builds things again, makes things better, that aims for the stars once more, and that once again, commands respect, and we want to get respect like we had it four years ago,'Â he said.
The entire world respected us. They respected us. They respected us more than they've ever respected us, and now they laugh at us. We can't have them laugh at us.
Throughout his campaign, Trump has accused the 'weak' administration of President Joe Biden and the Democratic nominee, Kamala Harris, of damaging America's reputation. He has claimed that the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza would not have broken out if he was still in charge.
Trump also argued that he had good relations with all world leaders, including Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping. He has also claimed that he will quickly resolve the Russia-Ukraine conflict if elected to a second term as president in November.
Biden and Harris, meanwhile, have accused Trump of undermining NATO and failing to stand up to Russia. 'Our NATO allies are so thankful that you are no longer president,' Harris told Trump during a televised debate last month.
The surprise attack on Israel launched by Hamas last year was a 'logical and legal' step towards defeating the 'malicious and cowardly' Zionist regime, Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has said.
On Friday, in his first public sermon in nearly five years, Khamenei defended the actions against Israel by the 'axis of resistance', which includes the Lebanese-based Hezbollah and Palestinian group Hamas.
Monday marks one year since the start of Israel's military operation in Gaza, which came in response to Hamas' surprise attack in southern Israel on October 7, 2023, in which around 1,100 people were killed and more than 200 people were taken hostage. Israel's campaign in the enclave, following years of a de-facto blockade of Gaza, has resulted in the deaths of over 41,000 Palestinians, Gaza's Health Ministry said earlier this week.
Tensions between Israel and neighboring Muslim countries have soared during the Gaza operation, with both Iran and Hezbollah supporting Hamas and Palestine. Earlier this month, the conflict entered a new stage as Israel launched a ground operation in Lebanon. In retaliation, Iran launched a massive missile attack on Israel this week.
Khamenei said in his sermon that the Palestinians, like 'every people,' have 'the right to defend their land, their home, their country, and their interests against aggressors,' and this 'logic is supported by international law.' He added that 'those who help' the Palestinians and support them are merely 'doing their duty.'
'This is the rule of Islam, the rule of reason, and international and global logic. The Palestinians are defending their land; their defense is legitimate, and helping them is also logical and legal,'Â he stated.
He defended Iran's recent missile attack on Israel, saying it was 'the minimum punishment for the usurping and bloodthirsty Zionist regime⦠whose only achievement has been to bomb homes, schools, hospitals and civilian gathering centers' in Gaza.
Khamenei went on to say that Iran 'will perform any duty required' to see Israel defeated, claiming that West Jerusalem has only managed to 'survive' for so long due to the assistance of its allies in the West.
'This regime acts like rabid wolves and raging dogs of America in the region. This malicious and cowardly entity has barely kept itself afloat thanks to America's support, and it will not last long,'Â he said.
Khamenei stressed that the main problem in the Middle East is foreign interference, as 'the countries of the region are capable of establishing security and peace' if left alone. He criticized America's involvement and support for West Jerusalem, saying the US has never wanted peace in the Middle East, but has instead been pursuing the goal 'of turning Israel into a tool to seize all the natural resources of the region and invest them in major global conflicts.'
Dr. Thierry Roels, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Country Director in Rwanda, confirmed that the shipment of the consignment was completed on Friday, October 4, 2024.
'The U.S. government has completed an initial shipment of therapeutic and vaccine doses to support Rwanda in the first days of its response to the emergence of the Marburg virus in Kigali,” Roels said on Saturday, October 5, 2024, without revealing the number of doses delivered.
Roels indicated that the U.S. government is working closely with international partners and Rwanda’s Ministry of Health to initiate clinical trials for evaluating investigational countermeasures. The U.S. is also considering additional shipments that would supply the trials.
The delivery of the consignment comes days after Rwanda’s Minister of Health, Dr. Sabin Nsanzimana, confirmed plans to roll out therapeutic clinical trials for the vaccination and treatment of the highly contagious disease.
Among the vaccines being evaluated is one developed by the Sabin Vaccine Institute, a non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C. Early-stage human trials have demonstrated that the vaccine is safe and triggers an immune response.
On Saturday, the Sabin Vaccine Institute announced the delivery of approximately 700 doses to Rwanda for a trial targeting frontline workers, including healthcare professionals.
“In response to a request from the government of Rwanda and the Ministry of Health to support its ongoing Marburg outbreak response, we have provided an initial shipment of 700 investigational Marburg vaccine doses to be used in a trial targeting frontline workers. We dispatched the shipment within seven days of first being contacted for assistance, thanks to our many partners,” the organization said in a statement.
“We are prepared to supply additional vaccines pending a request from Rwandan officials and authorization from BARDA, which is funding our current research and development efforts.”
In addition to vaccination efforts, Gilead Sciences, an American biopharmaceutical company based in Foster City, California, announced on Thursday that it would donate approximately 5,000 vials of its antiviral drug, remdesivir, to Rwanda for emergency use in response to the outbreak.
Rwanda has so far confirmed 46 cases, 12 deaths, and five recoveries from Marburg disease. Cumulative tests conducted have surpassed 1,700.
Initial symptoms of Marburg virus disease include high fever, severe headache, muscle and joint pain, and fatigue, followed by gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. As the disease progresses, it can lead to severe hemorrhaging, organ failure, and shock.
To prevent infection, health experts recommend maintaining strict hygiene practices, including frequent handwashing and avoiding contact with personal items or bodily fluids of individuals showing Marburg-like symptoms.
Rwanda has so far confirmed 46 cases, 12 deaths, and five recoveries from Marburg disease. Cumulative tests conducted have surpassed 1,700.
The Israeli embassy in New Delhi has requested access to the Delhi Police shooting range to train its security personnel, The Indian Express reported Saturday, citing senior security officers and unnamed sources.
The security division of Delhi Police received the unprecedented request from the Israeli Embassy in form of a letter on Sept. 23, which was sent to the headquarters for final deliberations.
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Although a final decision has not been made yet, sources indicate the request will likely be rejected.
'We are discussing the matter with the senior authorities and as of now, are likely to reject their request. But we are yet to take a final decision,' a senior security official told Indian Express.
Amid growing tensions in the Middle East, security has been increased around the Israeli embassy in New Delhi.
Earlier this month, additional security personnel were deployed around the Israeli embassy, the premises for which already have multi-layered security and several CCTV cameras, The Hindu reported, citing a senior Delhi Police officer.
Since 2021, two explosions have taken place near the Israeli embassy in the capital. No injuries or casualties were reported in either incident.
The potential successor to slain Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has been out of contact since Friday, a Lebanese security source said on Saturday, after an Israeli airstrike that is reported to have targeted him.
In its campaign against the Iran-backed Lebanese group, Israel carried out a large strike on Beirut's southern suburbs late on Thursday that Axios cited three Israeli officials as saying targeted Hashem Safieddine in an underground bunker.
The Lebanese security source and two other Lebanese security sources said that ongoing Israeli strikes on Beirut's southern suburb â” known as Dahiyeh â” since Friday have kept rescue workers from scouring the site of the attack.
Hezbollah has made no comment so far on Safieddine since the attack.
Israeli Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani said on Friday the military was still assessing the Thursday night airstrikes, which he said targeted Hezbollah's intelligence headquarters.
The loss of Nasrallah's rumored successor would be yet another blow to Hezbollah and its patron Iran. Israeli strikes across the region in the past year, sharply accelerated in the past few weeks, have decimated Hezbollah's leadership.
Israel expanded its conflict in Lebanon on Saturday with its first strike in the northern city of Tripoli, a Lebanese security official said, after more bombs hit Beirut suburbs and Israeli troops launched raids in the south.
Israel has begun an intense bombing campaign in Lebanon and sent troops across the border in recent weeks after nearly a year of exchanging fire with Hezbollah. Fighting had previously been mostly limited to the Israel-Lebanon border area, taking place in parallel to Israel's year-old war in Gaza against the Palestinian group Hamas.
Israel says it aims to allow the safe return of tens of thousands of citizens to their homes in northern Israel, bombarded by Hezbollah since Oct.8 last year.
The Israeli attacks have eliminated much of Hezbollah's senior military leadership, including Secretary General Nasrallah in an air attack on Sept. 27.
The Israeli assault has also killed hundreds of ordinary Lebanese, including rescue workers, Lebanese officials say, and forced 1.2 million people â” almost a quarter of the population â” to flee their homes.
The Lebanese security official told Reuters that Saturday's strike on a Palestinian refugee camp in Tripoli killed a member of Hamas, his wife and two children. Media affiliated with the Palestinian group also said the strike killed a leader of its armed wing.
The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the strike on Tripoli, a Sunni Muslim-majority port city that its warplanes also targeted during a 2006 war with Hezbollah.
Israel has meanwhile staged nightly bombardment of Dahiyeh, once a bustling and densely populated area of Beirut and a stronghold for Hezbollah.
On Saturday, smoke billowed over Dahiyeh, large parts of which have been reduced to rubble sending residents fleeing to other parts of Beirut or of Lebanon.
In northern Israel, air raid sirens sent people running for their shelters amid rocket fire from Lebanon.
An Israeli official told AFP on Saturday that the military is 'preparing a response' to the Iranian missile barrage that targeted Israel earlier this week.
'The IDF (Israeli military) is preparing a response to the unprecedented and unlawful Iranian attack on Israeli civilians and Israel,' the military official said on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to speak publicly on the issue.
He did not elaborate on the nature or timing of the response.
Israel's left-leaning newspaper Haaretz, quoting the military, reported that the military's response will be 'significant.'
'The IDF is preparing for a significant strike in Iran following this week's missile attack from Tehran,' the newspaper reported.
'The military does not rule out the possibility that Iran may launch missiles at Israeli territory again after the Israeli attack,' it added.
On October 1, Iran launched around 200 missiles at Israel, its second direct attack on the country in less than six months.
Most of the missiles were intercepted by Israel's aerial defense system, while some hit military bases but did not cause major damage or casualties.
Iran said the missiles were launched to avenge the assassination of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah who was killed by an Israeli air strike in the Lebanese capital on September 27.
Iran's missile attack was also in response to the death of the former political head of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed in Tehran on July 31.
Both Iran and Hamas blame Israel for Haniyeh's killing. Israel has not commented on his death.
Robert Jenrick will be toppled by the Tory party's right wing should he attempt to pivot to the centre ground if installed as leader, senior Conservatives have warned.
Jenrick, who remains the frontrunner for the job after the party's conference in Birmingham, has won support from the right with a series of uncompromising stances. He has said he would welcome Nigel Farage into the party, leave the European convention on human rights and vote for Donald Trump.
Having started life as an MP as a moderate, some believe he has only temporarily adopted a more rightwing stance as part of his efforts to win the leadership. Some allies have suggested he will move back to the centre once in office.
However, senior party figures are already warning Jenrick that if he becomes leader, his fate will be in the hands of rightwing MPs willing to attack those who have attempted to move away from their agenda.
They warned that he had entrusted his fate to the 'Braverman right' â” a reference to the former home secretary, Suella Braverman. Jenrick was made immigration minister under Braverman in the expectation that he would be a moderating force. However, he is said to have been radicalised by his time in the Home Office on the need for tougher policies.
One shadow minister compared Jenrick to Iain Duncan Smith, the former Tory leader delivered into power by the right, but ultimately unable to widen his appeal to voters. Duncan Smith was removed as leader after just over two years.
'What will happen to him is that he will suffer the fate of IDS,' they said. 'He will try to pivot to the centre, but what he'll find is that the Braverman right won't let him. They would pull their support and threaten to submit their latest vote of no confidence for a leadership contest. They have got him by the balls. It now only takes 19 letters to prompt a confidence vote in the leader.'
Allies of Jenrick strongly disputed the idea, pointing out that the likes of Victoria Atkins, Ed Argar and John Lamont â” Tory figures associated with the liberal, One Nation wing of the party â” also backed his leadership bid.
Jenrick bolstered his credentials with the party's grassroots during the conference by confirming that his daughter's middle name was Thatcher. He has also appeared in a hoodie emblazoned with the words 'Hamas Are Terrorists'.
MPs will whittle down the four remaining candidates to two this week. Those two will then be put forward to a vote of party members. While Jenrick remains favourite, a small number of MPs changing their vote could have a major impact. James Cleverly, shadow home secretary, was thought to have had a good conference after calling on the party to be 'more normal'.
However, there are sobering revelations about the party's relevance to the public in the latest Opinium poll for the Observer. It reveals that more of the public were aware of Phillip Schofield's return to TV in his programme Cast Away than had heard about the Conservative conference. Labour still leads in most policy areas with the public, though the two main parties are now tied on the economy.
Among those giving a view, Cleverly was deemed to have had a good conference, seeing an improvement in his 'acceptability' score and is currently the frontrunner among the wider British public.
Kemi Badenoch has taken the biggest knock to her public perception. She received criticism last week for suggesting maternity pay was 'excessive'. Half (49%) of 2019 Conservative voters say Cleverly would be an acceptable leader of the Conservative party, with 41% saying the same of Jenrick, 40% of Tom Tugendhat and 37% of Badenoch.
Adam Drummond, head of political and social research at Opinium, said: 'To nobody's surprise, voters are not paying a great deal of attention to the Conservative leadership contest and it is notable that, as unpopular as the Labour government already is, voters prefer them over the Tories on almost all issues, with the two parties tied on the economy.'
A group of 99 American physicians and medical professionals who volunteered to work in Gaza said they saw no signs of militant activity in the enclave's hospitals, calling on the Biden administration to immediately cease military, economic and diplomatic support for Israel.
In a letter Thursday to President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, the group, who collectively spent 254 weeks volunteering at Gaza's health care facilities, shared their firsthand experiences of the dire humanitarian conditions amid Israel's ongoing offensive, saying they had 'witnessed crimes beyond comprehension.'
'We wish to be absolutely clear: not once did any of us see any type of Palestinian militant activity in any of Gaza's hospitals or other health care facilities,' they said in the letter, which was published on the website 'Gaza Healthcare Letters.'
'We urge you to see that Israel has systematically and deliberately devastated Gaza's entire health care system and that Israel has targeted our colleagues in Gaza for torture, disappearance, and murder,' they added.
The letter details the suffering of women and children in hospitals, including widespread malnutrition, and a lack of essential medical supplies in Gaza. They also cited a study published in the medical journal Lancet in July that said the death toll in Gaza has already surpassed 118,000, more than 5% of Gaza's population.
'Every day I saw babies die. They had been born healthy. Their mothers were so malnourished that they could not breastfeed, and we lacked formula or clean water to feed them, so they starved,' said Asma Taha, a pediatric nurse practitioner, as quoted in the letter.
'Gaza was the first time I held a baby's brains in my hand. The first of many,' Dr. Mark Perlmutter, an orthopedic and hand surgeon, said in the letter.
Doctors said in the letter that Israel's 'continued, repeated' displacement of the malnourished and sick population of Gaza, half of whom are children, to areas without running water or even toilets available is 'absolutely shocking.'
'It is impossible that such widespread shooting of young children throughout Gaza, sustained over the course of an entire year, is accidental or unknown to the highest Israeli civilian and military authorities,' they said.
The group demanded that the Biden administration support an international arms embargo on both Israel and Palestinian groups until a permanent cease-fire is reached and both Israeli and Palestinian hostages are released. The signatories also asked for a meeting with Biden and Harris to discuss what they saw and why they feel American policy in the Middle East 'must change immediately.'
They also reiterated their calls in their July 25 letter, including reopening the Rafah crossing to allow humanitarian aid, including water and medical supplies, into Gaza.
'Every day that we continue supplying weapons and munitions to Israel is another day that women are shredded by our bombs and children are murdered with our bullets,' they said.
