The Times of Israel is liveblogging Wednesday’s events as they unfold.
Israeli strikes reported in Beirut’s southern suburbs, less than an hour before truce expected to begin
Air strikes hit Beirut’s southern suburbs early Wednesday, according to Lebanese media reports, less than an hour before an announced truce between Israel and Hezbollah is expected to come into force.
The IDF issued evacuation warnings for civilians ahead of the strikes.
Syrian Red Crescent says volunteer killed in alleged Israeli airstrike on border with Lebanon
Syria’s Red Crescent says that a volunteer was killed sand another was injured in alleged Israeli airstrikes on two locations along the Lebanon-Syria border on Tuesday night.
The medical organization says the volunteers were “performing their humanitarian duty of rescuing the wounded early on Wednesday.”
The reported strike is said by the Syrian Red Crescent to have damaged several ambulance and work points.
According to Syrian state media, some 18 people were injured in the strike on the Arida border crossing, while an unspecified number of casualties were reported in the alleged Israeli strike on the Dabousieh border crossing with Lebanon.
There is no immediate comment from the IDF.
US CENTCOM says it struck ‘Iranian-aligned militia weapons storage’ in Syria
The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) carried out an airstrike a short while ago against an “Iranian-aligned militia weapons storage facility in Syria,” it says in a brief statement, adding that the strike was a response to an attack on US forces in the area the previous day.
It says that the purpose of the strike was to “degrade their [Iranian-aligned forces] ability to plan and launch future attacks on US and Coalition forces who are in the region.”
CENTCOM commander Gen. Michael Kurilla says that the US “will not tolerate any attacks on our personnel and coalition partners.”
“We are committed to taking all necessary actions to ensure their protection,” he adds.
The statement adds that the impact of the strike is not immediately clear, but that there have been no reports of civilian casualties.
CENTCOM Forces Strike Iranian Aligned Target in Syria in Response to Attack on U.S. Personnel pic.twitter.com/w7bbBnLhD8
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) November 26, 2024
US official says there may be ‘window of opportunity’ for Israel-Saudi normalization
Asked to explain US President Joe Biden’s optimism about a potential Israel-Saudi normalization agreement following the announcement of a ceasefire in Lebanon, a senior administration official tells reporters that conversations US officials have held in the past 24 hours left them with the belief that there “is a window of opportunity here — if we can get some changes in Gaza.”
“The political and geopolitical stars of both are aligned, and we’re going to see what we can do over the next 50 or so days,” the US official says, insisting that Washington is clear-eyed about its prospects and will keep the incoming administration informed on its efforts.
The senior administration official is then asked why he’s able to maintain this optimistic assessment given repeated assertions by Israeli cabinet members that they will never accept the establishment of a Palestinian state, which is Riyadh’s condition for a deal with Israel.
Reflecting on his career in high-stakes negotiations, the official says he has repeatedly heard leaders enter them with declarations that include words such as “never” and “always.”
“They’ll say ‘We will never do this, and ‘We will always insist on that,’ but that doesn’t necessarily hold, because when you have that kind of a position you don’t reach an agreement, so I don’t get too excited when I hear those kinds of statements,” he says.
Report: US ‘side letter’ to Israel pledges to share intelligence on Hezbollah activity after ceasefire, cooperate against Iranian threat
Israel’s Channel 12 news outlet shares details from a side letter that it says the US is providing to Israel as part of the Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire deal, in which it affirms and details Israel’s right to defend itself against renewed threats from the Iran-backed terror group in Lebanon.
According to the report, the US will commit to providing Israel with intelligence information pertaining to violations of the terms of the ceasefire deal, and in particular, regarding any indication that Hezbollah is attempting to infiltrate the ranks of the Lebanese Armed Forces, which will be deployed to southern Lebanon.
The letter also reiterates the US’s commitment to cooperating with Israel to prevent Iran from continuing its destabilizing operations in Lebanon, including the smuggling of Iranian weapons to Hezbollah, the report adds.
The US also confirms in the letter that Israel has the right to act in response to threats from inside Lebanon, “in accordance with international law,” Channel 12 reports.
Regarding the possibility that Hezbollah will violate the terms of the ceasefire, the letter is reported to note that should the terms of the agreement be broken in southern Lebanon, from which Hezbollah is required to withdraw, Israel will reserve the right to act at any time.
Beyond southern Lebanon, it will reportedly only be permitted to act in response to Hezbollah violating the ceasefire if the Lebanese Armed Forces are unable or unwilling to deal with the violations itself.
Should Israel feel it is required to take action in response to threats inside Lebanon, regardless of where, it will be required to notify the United States wherever possible, Channel 12 says the letter adds.
Finally, the report says, the letter confirms Israel’s right to conduct reconnaissance flights over Lebanon, for intelligence purposes, so long as they do not break the sound barrier.
IDF says drones intercepted over Golan Heights, Red Sea
Two drones launched at Israel were intercepted by air defenses within a few minutes of each other a short while ago, in the Golan Heights and in the Red Sea, the IDF says.
Sirens had sounded in the northern Golan Heights after a drone, apparently launched from Iraq, entered Israeli airspace. The IDF says the drone was shot down.
Minutes later, another drone heading toward Israel was intercepted by the Israeli Air Force over the Red Sea, before reaching Israel, the military says. No sirens were activated.
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