Situation at a glance: Again attacks in Beirut – concerns about Iran’s nuclear facilities

Israel’s army continues attacks on the Hezbollah militia in Lebanon after renewed shelling. Once again, residential areas of the capital Beirut are also targeted. The military reported a “precise” attack there late in the evening. According to authorities, at least six people were killed in an air strike in the Basta-Bachoura district. Meanwhile, after Iran’s rocket attack on Israel, US President Joe Biden spoke out against an attack on the Islamic Republic’s nuclear facilities. “The answer is no,” Biden said in response to a reporter’s question. But Israel has a right to respond to Iran’s attack. The USA is Israel’s most important ally.

Biden had advocated carefully considering the response to Tuesday’s Iranian missile attack. The White House announced that new sanctions against Iran were also discussed in a joint meeting of the group of seven large democratic industrial nations (G7). They said they were working on a joint statement. Israel is preparing to respond to the Iranian missile attack with attacks inside Iran in the coming days, the US news portal Axios reported.

Is Israel attacking Iran’s nuclear facilities?

According to Israeli officials, oil production facilities and other strategic facilities in Iran could be targeted, the news portal further reported. The New York Times had previously reported, citing US officials, that in a possible scenario Israel could also attack Iran’s nuclear facilities. In particular, the enrichment facilities in Natans, the heart of Iran’s nuclear program, could be targeted, it said. Iran claims it is for civilian purposes only. Israel and the West see it differently.

“Israel must not miss this golden opportunity to destroy Iran’s nuclear program,” wrote former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett on Platform X. “If we don’t do it now, I don’t see it ever happening,” he said. UN Secretary-General António Guterres once again called on the conflicting parties for a ceasefire. “The raging fires in the Middle East are rapidly becoming an inferno,” he told an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council in New York.

Guterre’s “undesirable person” – UN: Political statement

Guterres did not address the fact that Israel had previously declared him an “undesirable person” and justified this, among other things, by the fact that the UN Secretary General had not clearly condemned the Iranian missile attack. The United Nations sees Israel’s statement as a political move. This is another attack on a UN employee by the Israeli government, said Guterres’ spokesman Stéphane Dujarric.

Meanwhile, Israel continues to take massive action against the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militia in Lebanon. The army initially did not provide any details about the targeted nighttime attack in Beirut. Initial reports indicate an apartment in a building was hit. According to authorities, there were at least six dead and seven injured in the Basta-Bachoura district. Eyewitnesses in Beirut also reported several attacks on a southern suburb of the city. The sounds of explosions could be heard throughout the capital. Residents reported drones and fighter jets circling over the city.

The federal government is once again taking Germans out of Beirut by plane

Meanwhile, the Bundeswehr had another 130 German nationals flown to Germany via Beirut airport. The Germans who were particularly at risk were picked up by an Airbus A330 from the multinational air transport unit MMU (Multinational Multi Role Tanker Transport Unit), the Foreign Office and the Defense Ministry announced in Berlin. The plane landed in Frankfurt am Main in the evening. The “Spiegel” first reported on the flight. So far, a total of 241 people have been flown out of Lebanon using Bundeswehr aircraft, the ministries said.

Meanwhile, warning sirens wailed again during the night in numerous areas in the north and center of Israel. According to its own information, the air force intercepted a suspicious flying object off the coast of central Israel. According to the Israeli army, the north of the country had been attacked again the day before with around 140 rockets from Lebanon. Some of the projectiles were intercepted by the missile defense, while other projectiles landed in open areas, it was said. On Tuesday, Israeli ground troops moved into Lebanon for the first time in almost two decades.

Dead on both sides

For the first time since the start of the ground offensive, the Israeli armed forces suffered losses, with eight soldiers killed in battle with Hezbollah, the army announced. Almost a year after the start of the Gaza war on October 7th, the focus of the fighting is shifting towards the northern neighboring country. Israel’s stated goal is to drive the Shiite militia from the border so that around 60,000 evacuated Israelis can return to their homes. According to official figures, 46 people were killed in Israeli attacks in Lebanon on Wednesday alone. 85 others were injured, the Ministry of Health announced.

As a result of the massive Israeli attacks, the number of displaced people in Lebanon rose to around 1.2 million, according to government figures. According to the head of the government’s emergency committee, Nasser Yassin, around 160,000 of them are in emergency accommodation. The others moved to friends, relatives, hotels or their own homes in other areas, the state news agency NNA reported. According to government figures, almost 300,000 people have crossed the border into Syria since the intensive Israeli attacks began last week.

Dead also in Syria

According to Syrian reports, three people were killed in an attack on the capital Damascus. The state news agency Sana reported that an Israeli attack hit a residential building. Three people were also injured. As is usual in such cases, the Israeli military did not comment. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed the attack and initially reported at least two dead. The son-in-law of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed by the Israeli military, is said to have been among the victims. The building was therefore used by members of the Hezbollah militia and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.