Author: France 24

Countries around the world condemned Iran’s strikes on Israel late Saturday, warning the attack threatened to further destabilise the Middle East.  Source link

Iran on late Saturday mounted a retaliatory attack on Israel by launching hundreds of drones and missiles – most of which were intercepted by Israeli forces – marking the first time Iran has launched a direct military assault on Israel. “Without any doubt, a psychological barrier has been crossed. Iran has never attacked Israel in the past 45 years and so this was quite significant,” said Ali Vaez, project director for Iran at the International Crisis group.  Source link

An incoming attack by more than 300 Iranian drones and ballistic missiles was the latest challenge to Israel’s air defence system, which already has been working overtime to cope with incoming rocket, drone and missile attacks throughout the six-month war against Hamas. Israel’s multilayered air-defence system includes the Arrow, David’s Sling, Patriot, Iron Dome and Iron Beam. Source link

The Israeli army on Sunday allegedly said residents from northern Gaza are allowed to return home, prompting crowds of displaced Palestinians in the south to flood the coastal road leading to the north of the Strip, FRANCE 24 Gaza correspondent Rami Abou Jamus said. While Israel has denied such statements, thousands of Gazans are attempting to cross back into the north despite eye-witness reports of soldiers shooting at men over 14 and under 50.  Source link

Israel’s Iron Dome air defence system has intercepted thousands of rockets since it first went into operation in 2011, providing the country with crucial cover during times of conflict. Source link

TRT journalist Sami Shehada was wounded by an Israeli strike in Gaza Friday as he and his crew were filming. Israeli forces launched strikes and raids in central and northern Gaza, killing and wounding dozens according to residents of the Nuseirat refugee camp. Meanwhile the Hamas-run health ministry said 25 members of a family were killed in an air strike in Gaza city. Source link

US President Joe Biden on Friday said he expected Iran to attack Israel “sooner, rather than later” and warned Tehran not to proceed. Israel braced on Friday for an attack by Iran or its proxies as warnings grew of retaliation for an attack on Iran’s embassy compound last week in Damascus that killed a senior commander in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps’ overseas Quds Force and six other officers. Source link

The search for a missing Israeli teenager resumed Saturday in the occupied West Bank, where settler attacks on Palestinian villages have left at least one dead and dozens injured, sources on both sides said. The Israeli army said it was still looking for Benjamin Achimeir, 14, who went missing early on Friday from Malachi Hashalom, an outpost near the city of Ramallah. Source link

French athlete Anouk Garnier broke the rope climbing world record on Wednesday morning after she ascended over 100 metres to the second floor of the Eiffel Tower. Source link

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards on Saturday seized a container ship linked to Israel, state media reported. The news came after the US on Friday said it was sending military reinforcements to the region, after Iran vowed retaliation for a deadly strike on the consular section of its Damascus embassy in Syria almost two weeks ago. “This seems to be just the first step potentially in what could be several moves against Israel or Israeli interests in the region,” Jasmine El-Gamal, political analyst and former Pentagon Middle East advisor told FRANCE 24. Source link