The war in the Middle East is reaching even scarier points- Hezbollah launched a rocket attack on Thursday, October 24, targeting northern Israel. The assault involved approximately 30 rockets, striking the Arab town of Majd al-Krum and reportedly injuring at least nine civilians.
Hezbollah also claimed to have targeted the nearby city of Karmiel with this salvo. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed the attack and stated that the exchange left three Israeli soldiers dead in separate fighting within Gaza.
The soldiers, identified as Cpt. Barak Israel Sagan (22) of Petah Tikva, Sgt. Ido Ben Zvi (21) of Shomrat, and Sgt. Hillel Ovadia (22) of Jerusalem, all members of Armored Battalion 196, died when a bomb detonated near their tank in northern Gaza’s Jabaliya region. Several other soldiers were injured in this incident and were transported to a nearby hospital for treatment.
On the same day, Friday, October 25, the IDF’s intensified operations in Lebanon and Gaza led to further casualties. Lebanese officials accused Israel of targeting journalists, resulting in the deaths of three media personnel in the southern Lebanese town of Hasbaya. Among the deceased were Al-Mayadeen TV cameraman Ghassan Najjar, broadcast engineer Mohammad Reda, and Al-Manar TV video journalist Wissam Qassem. Lebanese authorities denounced the strike as a “war crime,” while Israel has yet to respond to the allegations.
The attack on Hasbaya occurred in a bungalow area housing journalists covering the conflict, where media outlets had rented accommodations for staff. Al-Mayadeen TV, a Beirut-based pan-Arab station, identified Najjar and Reda among the deceased, while Hezbollah-affiliated Al-Manar TV confirmed Qassem’s death.
The killing of three journalists in southern Lebanon on Friday drew international condemnation, with the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) “strongly condemning” Israel and calling for urgent global intervention. The CPJ statement criticized what it described as Israel’s “long-standing pattern of impunity” concerning journalists’ deaths.
In Gaza, Israeli airstrikes killed 38 people from a single family, including 14 children, in the southern city of Khan Younis, according to local health officials. The strikes come amid a nearly three-week-long siege on Gaza, where hundreds of Palestinians have been killed in what Israel describes as a large-scale military operation.
Prospects for a ceasefire remain stalled despite growing diplomatic pressure and protests within Israel. Over 130 Israeli reservists signed an open letter to PM Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, refusing to fight in Gaza and Lebanon unless a ceasefire and hostage deal are in place.
In southern Lebanon, the UN peacekeeping mission UNIFIL reported that IDF soldiers fired on an observation post near Dhayra on Tuesday, forcing peacekeepers to withdraw. UNIFIL also stated the IDF has “repeatedly” pressured them to abandon border posts, allegedly damaging equipment in a bid to undermine their monitoring efforts.
Talks for a potential agreement are set to resume this weekend, although sources indicate little chance of a breakthrough before the U.S. presidential election. Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Middle East leaders in London, pushing for a diplomatic resolution.
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