Nine people are killed in an attack in Beirut as IDF and Hezbollah clash

Japan sent two of its military transport planes to Jordan and Greece today, Japanese broadcaster NHK reported, as it prepares for a possible airlift of its citizens from Lebanon.

Meanwhile, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong announced today that the government has reserved 500 commercial airline seats for Australian citizens to travel with their families on Saturday.

“I want to say to Australians who want to leave: please use the option available to you,” Wong told reporters.

A day after a Beirut evacuation flight took off with 150 British nationals on board, the British government announced it would charter additional flights.

Israeli forces issued another evacuation warning in southern Lebanon today, ordering the evacuation of 25 villages.

Israel has asked residents of the villages to move north of the Awali River, IDF Arab spokesman Avichay Adraee said in a post on X, referring to the river that runs a third of the entire length of Lebanon extends.

Earlier today, he urged residents in southern Lebanon who had already been ordered to evacuate not to return as fighting was still ongoing.

At least nine people have now been killed in the Israeli airstrike that hit central Beirut overnight, the Lebanese Health Ministry said today.

The death toll was updated from six. According to the ministry, another 14 people were injured in the airstrike on the Bachoura district, which is within walking distance of the prime minister’s headquarters as well as many foreign embassies, including those of the United Kingdom and Australia.

The CIA publishes instructions in Farsi, Mandarin and Korean to allow people to share information with the agency without running afoul of authoritarian regimes.

“People from around the world are trying to contact us, and we are offering them instructions on how to do so safely,” the CIA said in a statement on Wednesday. “The safety of those willing to reach out to us around the world is of paramount importance to us, and we want them to do so as safely as possible.”

Farsi is spoken by more than 100 million people in Iran and surrounding countries, while Mandarin is the majority language in China with more than a billion speakers.

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More than 1.4 million people in the besieged Gaza Strip did not receive their food rations in September, up from 1 million people the month before, Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UN agency in Gaza, UNRWA, said in a post on X yesterday.

“Hunger continues to spread in Gaza,” he said, adding that nearly 70 percent of the enclave’s grain fields had been destroyed. “An entire population is forced to rely exclusively on humanitarian aid.”

Lazzarini said over 110,000 tons of food supplies are stuck outside the Gaza Strip due to access restrictions and damaged roads.

“Restrictions and delays in aid deliveries are only making the already dire situation for displaced families worse,” he said.

The Israeli military said it killed the head of the Hamas government in the Gaza Strip, Rawhi Mushtaha, and two other Hamas leaders in an attack about three months ago.

The three Hamas leaders “were hiding in a fortified and equipped underground compound in the northern Gaza Strip,” the IDF said in a statement today.

The IDF said Mushtaha was one of “Hamas’ most senior operatives” and served as the right-hand man of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar. The IDF has vowed to hunt down Sinwar for orchestrating the October 7 attacks.

In addition to Mushtaha, two security leaders, Sameh al-Siraj and Samih Oudeh, were also killed in the attack, the IDF said. Hamas has not announced the deaths.

Yemen’s Houthi rebels said today they had fired a series of drones toward Tel Aviv.

“The operation successfully achieved its objectives as the drones reached their targets without the enemy being able to intercept or shoot them down,” the Iran-backed militia group said in a statement.

Photos show the aftermath of a nighttime Israeli airstrike that targeted the Moawwad neighborhood in Beirut’s southern suburbs.

Israel has warned residents of Lebanese villages in the south not to return to their homes, saying Israeli military attacks are still ongoing.

“For your safety and the safety of your families – do not return home until further notice,” IDF Arab spokesman Avichay Adraee said in a post on X today.

The IDF announced evacuation orders for 21 villages in southern Lebanon yesterday.

Vice President Kamala Harris said she does not expect American troops to have to fight in Israel.

“I will remain unwaveringly committed to Israel’s ability to defend itself and take seriously the need to deal with Iran given the threat it poses to U.S. interests, our allies and stability in the region,” said she interviewed with KDKA, the CBS affiliate in Pittsburgh.

Asked whether U.S. forces could be drawn into the escalating conflict, Harris replied: “No, absolutely not.”

Satellite photos appear to show damage to an Israeli military airfield after the Iranian missile attack.

Images taken yesterday from the Nevatim air base in the south of the country appear to show a hole in the roof of an aircraft hangar, according to the Associated Press news agency. Large pieces of rubble can be seen scattered around the building, it said.

It was not clear exactly what caused the damage, and the Israeli military did not immediately respond to an AP request for comment on the satellite images.

At least six people were killed and seven injured in Israeli attacks in the heart of the Lebanese capital overnight, health authorities said.

The attacks hit Beirut’s central Bachoura district, within walking distance of the prime minister’s headquarters and many foreign embassies, including those of the United Kingdom and Australia.

According to the country’s Ministry of Health, three people died immediately and three others died later from their serious injuries.

Oil prices jumped today as tensions escalate in the Middle East, sparking fears that crude supplies could be disrupted.

A possible target for an Israeli retaliatory attack on Iran is the country’s oil facilities, analysts say.

Brent crude futures rose 92 cents, or 1.24%, to $74.82 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 95 cents, or 1.36%, to $71.05.

Hezbollah said it attacked northern Israel early this morning and claimed to have hit Israeli soldiers.

The Iran-backed militant group said it attacked two Israeli forces in Hanita and Misgav Am, respectively.

The Israeli military said this morning that “two UAVs have been identified that came from Lebanon. The IAF intercepted a UAV off the coast of Nahariya and a downed projectile was identified in an open area. No injuries were reported. No sirens were sounded per protocol.”

It continues: “After the sirens sounded in the Upper Galilee region, approximately 25 projectiles were identified as coming from Lebanon. Some of the projectiles were intercepted and fallen projectiles were identified.”

Israel is preparing for its response to Iran’s missile attack, Israeli and US officials say. President Biden said he supports Israel’s right to respond. Eight Israeli soldiers were killed in fighting in southern Lebanon.