Shafik Khalili | Staff Writer
On January 2, 2024, Israeli forces carried out the first missile attack on Beirut since the 2006 War. At around 6 pm, a missile from an Israeli drone struck the southern suburb of Beirut killing a total of 7 people, some of which were Hamas members. According to Reuters and CNN, the bombing resulted in the death of 4 Palestinians and 3 Lebanese. The targeted Palestinians included Senior Hamas Official Saleh Al Arouri and two other Hamas wing commanders, while the others are still unknown. Saleh al-Arouri was a Senior Leader of Hamas, serving as the Deputy Chairman of its political bureau. He was also the founding commander of Hamas’s military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades. His death in Beirut marked a significant loss for Hamas. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had repeatedly signaled in recent months that al-Arouri was a target.
The Israeli-led attack stands as a direct infringement of the 1701 United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolution as Al Arouri’s death was carried out with a clear attack on and breach of Lebanese sovereignty. However, this is not the first instance of such violations committed by the occupational state of Israel towards Lebanon.
Ever since the Hamas-led October 7 attacks, transgressions on the southern border arose between the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group and the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). One of the numerous war crimes committed by Israel includes the targeting and killing of three Lebanese journalists in the south. Issam Abdallah, a Reuters journalist, was killed by IDF tank fire when two shells were launched at his team while broadcasting the hostilities happening at the border. The other two victims were Farah Omar and Rabih Al Maamari, two Al Mayadeen journalists who were killed on November 21st. As of December 5, 2023, 58,835 individuals have been displaced from South Lebanon in fear of Israeli bombardment. Additionally, the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health has declared a total of 94 killed (15 civilian deaths confirmed) and 406 wounded. Private property and public infrastructure have also been damaged. Widespread fires caused by the incendiary effect of projectiles used harmed Lebanese agricultural land. Livelihood opportunities are dwindling in the conflict zone, and people are finding it increasingly difficult to meet their basic needs due to the imposition of restrictive measures such as curfews and rising rental prices. Children in shelters who have recently been displaced are experiencing significant psychological distress and anxiety, including heightened fear and sleep disorders. In Nabatieh, 24 schools remain closed, affecting 4,753 displaced students, while six schools in the south remain closed, affecting 446 displaced children. Three primary health care centres in the Marjayoun and Bent Jbeil districts remain closed due to security concerns. The Washington Post discovered the remains of three 155mm artillery rounds fired into Dheira, near Israel’s border, which incinerated at least four homes. While in 2013 the Israeli military pledged to phase out the use of white phosphorus on the battlefield in favor of gas-based smoke shells, these rounds ejected white phosphorus-saturated felt wedges. According to ACLED data, Israel has used the munition more than 60 times in Lebanon’s border areas in the last two months.
Despite a consistent back-and-forth between Israel and Hezbollah, the future of this, now increasingly regional conflict, remains undecided and grey.
Sources:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/1/2/top-hamas-official-saleh-al-arouri-killed-in-beirut-suburb
https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/explosion-southern-beirut-suburb-dahiyeh-two-security-sources-2024-01-02/
https://edition.cnn.com/2024/01/02/middleeast/beirut-lebanon-hamas-official-killed-intl/index.html
https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/12/07/israel-strikes-journalists-lebanon-apparently-deliberate
https://reliefweb.int/report/lebanon/lebanon-flash-update-4-escalation-hostilities-south-lebanon-9-december-2023
https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/2023/12/11/israel-us-white-phosphorus-lebanon/