Israel PM says okayed Lebanon pager attacks

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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said yesterday he okayed a deadly September attack on Hezbollah communications devices which exploded in Lebanon, the first time Israel has admitted involvement.

Hezbollah had previously blamed its arch-foe for the blasts that dealt a major blow to the Iran-backed militant group, and vowed revenge. "Netanyahu confirmed Sunday that he greenlighted the pager operation in Lebanon," his spokesman Omer Dostri told AFP of the attacks.

Hand - held devices used by Hezbollah operatives detonated two days in a row in supermarkets, on streets and at funerals in mid-September.

They killed nearly 40 people and wounded nearly 3,000, and preceded Israel's ongoing military operation in Lebanon. Hezbollah began low intensity strikes on Israel in support of Hamas following its ally's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel which triggered the Gaza war.

Strikes have intensified since war broke out in Lebanon in late September, when Israel escalated its air campaign against Hezbollah and later sent ground troops into south Lebanon.

US warplanes attack Iranbacked Huthi targets in Yemen: Pentagon

US warplanes staged multiple strikes yesterday night on Iran-backed Huthi advanced weapons storage facilities in Yemen, the Pentagon said.

The facilities contained various weapons used to target military and civilian vessels navigating international waters throughout the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, according to information provided to AFP by the Pentagon.

The Huthi-run Al Masirah television network reported three American and British raids that targeted the capital Sanaa’s southern Al Sabeen district. “ Eye witnesses said they heard intense flying, along with explosions in different parts of the capital Sanaa,” Al Masirah said.

The rebels say the strikes, which have disrupted maritime traffic in a globally important waterway, target vessels linked to Israel and are intended to signal solidarity with Palestinians during the Gaza war. The attacks have seriously disrupted the Red Sea route which carries 12 percent of global trade.

In more than 100 Huthi attacks over nearly a year, four sailors have been killed and two ships have sunk, while one vessel and its crew remain detained since being hijacked last November.