Tensions in the Middle East intensified as Western countries continued to call on citizens to leave Lebanon amid concerns of an escalation of the conflict into a regional war. Tensions have risen after nearly 10 months of war in Gaza and the killing of two leaders of the militant groups Hezbollah and Hamas in separate attacks in Lebanon and Iran last week. These killings brought threats of retaliation from Iran.
At least 44 Palestinians were killed Sunday by Israeli strikes in Gaza, according to health officials. An Israeli airstrike hit two schools in Gaza City on Sunday, killing at least 25 people, the official Palestinian news agency said, while the Israeli military said it hit a Hamas military compound on the school grounds, while An Israeli airstrike hit a tented camp inside a hospital in central Gaza. Meanwhile, a Palestinian killed two people in a knife attack on the outskirts of Tel Aviv.
The Israeli military said the attacks targeted a Palestinian militant, but other explosions followed, which they said “indicated the presence of weapons in the area”.
The hospital in Deir al-Balah is the main medical facility operating in central Gaza, and thousands of people have taken refuge there after fleeing their homes in the war-torn territory. Another attack on a house near the hospital killed a girl and her parents, residents said.
Meanwhile, a stabbing attack by a Palestinian killed two people in a suburb of Tel Aviv. A woman in her 70s and a man in his 80s were killed in the stabbing, according to Israeli authorities, while police said the attack was carried out by a Palestinian militant who was “neutralized”.
Tensions have risen after nearly 10 months of war in Gaza and the killing of two leaders of the militant groups Hezbollah and Hamas in separate attacks in Lebanon and Iran last week.
These attacks raised fears of retaliation by Iran and its allies against Israel and the possibility of an even more devastating regional war.
France and Italy on Sunday asked their citizens in Lebanon to leave the country because of the risk of escalating conflict in the Middle East, their foreign ministries said. Likewise, the Foreign Ministries of these two countries requested that their citizens leave Iran temporarily as well, given the risk of closing its airspace.
Paris and Rome appear to have followed in the footsteps of Washington and London, which on Saturday asked their citizens to leave Lebanon.
In another development, Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi made a rare visit to Iran on Sunday, during which he called for an end to the escalation of violence and for the region to live in “peace, security and stability”.
Mr. Safadi's visit to Iran follows ongoing diplomatic outreach by the United States and its partners, including France, Britain, Italy and Egypt, to prevent further escalation of the conflict.
The Pentagon said late Friday that the US military will deploy an additional fighter jet to the Middle East and keep an aircraft carrier in the region.
Israel is prepared for any scenario, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, as he blamed the militant group Hamas for the failure of negotiations.
“The State of Israel is in a war on many fronts against the axis of evil, which is led by Iran. We hit each of his arms hard. We are prepared for any scenario, both defensively and offensively. I repeat to our enemies: we will respond and strike with precision. Any act of aggression against us, from any front, will take a strong blow,” he said.
Hamas-led militants killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took about 250 people hostage in their surprise attack in southern Israel last October.
Israel's massive offensive launched in Gaza has killed at least 39,550 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and militants.
The war has also displaced the vast majority of Gaza's 2.3 million inhabitants several times.
In addition to Hamas, the militant group Hezbollah has regularly exchanged fire with Israel along the border with Lebanon since the start of the war, in what the militant group says is aimed at easing pressure on its Iran-backed ally Hamas. The ongoing attacks and counter-attacks have increased rapidly in recent months.
