West Asia latest Israeli strikes on Lebanon and Gaza leave dozens dead

Jerusalem, Oct 25 (AP) Lebanon's state-run National News Agency said an Israeli airstrike hit guesthouses where journalists were staying in southeast Lebanon, killing three media staffers from two different news agencies Friday. Meanwhile, an Israeli attack on the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis left 38 people dead.
    Several journalists have been killed since a near-daily exchange of fire began along the Lebanon-Israel border on October 8, 2023.
    Lebanon's health ministry says the total toll over the past year is over 2,500 killed and 12,000 wounded. The fighting in Lebanon has driven 1.2 million people from their homes, including more than 400,000 children, according to the United Nations children's agency. Israeli strikes have killed much of Hezbollah's top leadership since fighting ramped up in September.
    Israel's offensive in Gaza has killed over 42,000 Palestinians, according to local health authorities, who do not differentiate between militants and civilians. The Israel-Hamas war began after Hamas-led militants on October 7, 2023, blew holes in Israel's security fence and stormed in, killing some 1,200 people — mostly civilians — and abducting 250 others.
    United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Jordan's Foreign Minister, Ayman Safadi, on Friday in London, where the Arab leader accused Israel of engaging in ethnic cleansing in Gaza. Safadi did not mince words Friday when describing Israel's role in the conflicts, saying cease-fire negotiation mediators are trying to “get through the nightmare that the region continues to live in.”
    
    Here's the latest:
    Israel says 3 injured by shrapnel from rocket attack from Lebanon
    JERUSALEM — Shrapnel from a rocket attack from Lebanon critically injured three people in Israel Friday, Israeli rescue services said.
    The three — two 21-year-old men and a 35-year-old woman — were injured in Majd Al-Krum, a predominantly Arab town in the country's north, rescue services said. It said six others were injured, including an 80-year-old man in serious condition.

    Israeli military confirms its troops operating near north Gaza hospital
    JERUSALEM — Israel's military confirmed Friday that its troops were operating around Kamal Adwan hospital in north Gaza. The hospital's director had said the facility was facing a catastrophic situation with bombardment, Israeli troops preventing the entry of crucial aid and patients dying for lack of medical supplies.
    In a social media video posted late Thursday, the hospital's director, Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, said the hospital had been directly shelled by a tank, a claim the Israeli military did not immediately respond to.

    In meeting with Blinken, Jordan's foreign minister alleges Israel is engaging in ethnic cleansing
    LONDON — United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Jordan's Foreign Minister, Ayman Safadi, on Friday in London, where the Arab leader accused Israel of engaging in ethnic cleansing in Gaza.
    “The only path to save the region from that is for Israel to stop the aggressions on Gaza, on Lebanon, stop unilateral illegal measures of the West Bank that is also pushing this situation,” Safadi said.

    Israeli attack kills 38 overnight in Khan Younis
    DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — The Israeli military conducted operations overnight into Friday in Khan Younis, killing 38 people and injuring more than a dozen others, health officials said.
    Palestinians who were killed or injured were taken to the European and Nasser Hospitals. Records from the European hospital obtained by the AP showed at least 15 members from al-Farra family were killed, including 13 children.
    
    Israel has attacked 55 hospitals, Lebanon's health minister says
    BEIRUT — Lebanon's Health Minister Firass Abiad said Friday that Israel has carried out attacks on 55 hospitals — 36 of which were directly hit — leaving 12 people dead and 60 wounded.
    Abiad told reporters that eight hospitals have been closed while seven are still partially functioning.

    Israeli strike closes Lebanese border crossing with neighbouring Syria
    BEIRUT — An Israeli airstrike in northeast Lebanon has closed another border crossing with neighbouring Syria, Lebanon's state news agency said Friday.
    The airstrike on the outskirts of the village of Qaa brings the number of border crossings between the two countries that have been struck by Israel's military to three. That leaves three functioning border crossings.

    Lebanon's information minister accuses Israel of committing a war crime
    BEIRUT — Lebanon's Information Minister Ziad Makary alleged Friday that the attack on a compound housing journalists which killed three media staffers is an “assassination” and “a war crime.”
    In a statement, Makary said there were 18 journalists representing seven media organisations at the compound in the town of Hasbaya in south Lebanon.
    
    An Israeli airstrike on a journalist compound kills 3 TV staffers, Lebanon's state news says
    BEIRUT — An Israeli airstrike on a compound housing journalists in southeast Lebanon has killed three media staffers, Lebanon's state-run National News Agency said Friday.
    Local news station Al Jadeed aired footage from the scene showing collapsed buildings and cars marked “PRESS,” covered in dust and rubble. The Israeli army did not issue a warning prior to the strike, which hit a collection of chalets that had been rented by various media outlets. (AP)
    
GSP

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)