Three Lebanese army troops are killed in an Israeli attack

An Israeli attack killed three Lebanese troops in southern Lebanon on Thursday, as France hosted a conference to rally support for Lebanese state forces, seen as essential to any diplomatic solution to the war between Israel and Hezbollah.

The Lebanese soldiers were killed during an early morning strike as they evacuated injured people on the outskirts of the southern village of Yater, the Lebanese army said. There was no immediate comment on the attack from the Israeli army, which previously said it was not operating against the Lebanese army but apologized days ago for another fatal attack.

The area is part of the border area that was bombarded by Israel during its months-long offensive against the heavily armed, Iranian-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah, in a conflict arising from the Gaza war.

The Lebanese army, armed and trained by the United States, has little influence on the ground in Hezbollah strongholds in southern Lebanon. It recruits from Lebanon’s numerous sectarian communities and has been seen as a guarantor of civil peace since the 1975-1990 civil war.

WATCH IDF spokesperson says resolution 1701 will not be enforced:

IDF officer says UN forces in Lebanon are failing to control Hezbollah

Israeli Army Lieutenant Colonel Jordan Hertzberg said in an interview with CBC’s Briar Stewart that Israeli forces had found Hezbollah reinforcements, rockets and grenades “under the noses” of UN peacekeepers stationed near the Lebanon-Israel border, whose mandate is to support the armed forces. the Lebanese army in securing the border area.

Its deployment in the south is an important part of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the war between Hezbollah and Israel in 2006. The meeting in Paris will reiterate that Resolution 1701 must be the basis for a cessation of current hostilities.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told his Israeli counterpart on Wednesday that Washington was concerned about attacks on the Lebanese forces as he urged Israel to take steps to ensure the security of the Lebanese army and the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon , the Pentagon said.

Heavy losses suffered by Hezbollah

A security source in Lebanon said that 13 Lebanese army troops have been killed on active duty since hostilities began last year. Another 16 had been killed while at home. Israel has apologized in the past when it confirmed Lebanese military deaths.

Israel launched its Lebanon offensive with the stated aim of securing the return home of tens of thousands of Israelis who had evacuated their homes in northern Israel due to a year of cross-border rocket fire by Hezbollah.

Israel dealt Hezbollah heavy blows, killing its leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, along with other top commanders and potential successors to Nasrallah, and launching airstrikes on its strongholds in the south, the Beqaa Valley and Beirut’s southern suburbs.

The Israeli military said early Thursday that its “forces are continuing their limited, localized, targeted ground attacks against the terrorist organization Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.”

Israeli forces had “eliminated dozens of terrorists” and the Israeli Air Force had “struck more than 160 Hezbollah terror targets, including launch facilities and terrorist infrastructure sites across Lebanon,” the report said.

France and Germany announce aid packages for Lebanon

With more than 2,500 people dead from Israel’s offensive in Lebanon and more than a million people driven from their homes, the Paris Conference aims to mobilize both humanitarian aid and support for the Lebanese army, according to Lebanese authorities.

About 70 government delegations and 15 international organizations participated, with the goals of at least 500 million euros ($746 million Cdn) in humanitarian aid and pushing for a ceasefire.

Lebanon’s interim prime minister said international support would be needed to strengthen the army, including new recruits, and rebuild the country’s destroyed infrastructure.

“The storm we are currently witnessing is unlike any other because it carries within it the seeds of total destruction, not only for our country, but also for all human values,” Najib Mikati told delegates.

France has historic ties with Lebanon and has worked with Washington to broker a ceasefire. President Emmanuel Macron said France would provide 100 million euros ($149 million Cdn) in aid, while Germany said it would give 96 million euros ($143 million Cdn).

“There must be a ceasefire in Lebanon. More damage, more victims and more strikes will not enable the end of terrorism or guarantee security for all,” Macron said.

But US Secretary of State Antony Blinken skipped the Paris conference and continued his tour of the Middle East in a last-ditch effort for peace before next month’s US elections, while regional power Saudi Arabia, which was reluctant to intervene in Lebanon, sent a deputy minister.

Neither Israel, whose Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu criticized the initiative, nor Iran were invited.

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly and Stéphane Dion, Ottawa’s ambassador to France, led the Canadian delegation at the conference.

Canada previously announced aid packages for Lebanese citizens that amounted to $25 million, according to Minister of International Development Ahmed Hussen on October 10.

Hezbollah declared solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza following the Hamas-led attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people including several Canadian citizenssays Israel. The rampage also saw the kidnapping of 250 people, according to Israeli government figures, with about 100 yet to be repatriated.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive in Gaza resulted in heavy casualties, displacement of people and destruction in the area. More than 42,847 Palestinians have been killed and 100,544 injured in the Israeli military offensive, Gaza’s Health Ministry said on Thursday. The ministry makes no distinction between fighters and civilians, but says thousands of women and children have been killed.

The Israeli military on Wednesday named six Palestinian Al Jazeera reporters in Gaza who they say are also members of Hamas or Islamic Jihad militant groups, an accusation the Qatari network dismissed as an attempt to silence journalists.

The Committee to Protect Journalists’ Middle East Program said on X that the accusations amounted to smearing Palestinian journalists “with baseless ‘terrorist’ labels.”