Israel and Hamas at War – Day 543
Previous days
Lebanese leaders have condemned an Israeli airstrike that targeted a building in southern Beirut, with both President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam calling it a serious escalation. The strike, launched early Tuesday morning, killed three and injured seven others, according to Lebanese health authorities.
Aoun decried the strike as a “dangerous warning,” urging international support for Lebanon’s sovereignty. He emphasized the need for greater global efforts to defend the country’s territorial integrity against Israeli actions.
Salam described the attack as a violation of the ceasefire that ended over a year of conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, labeling it a breach of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the 2006 war between the two sides.
Israel, however, justified the strike, claiming it targeted a Hezbollah operative involved in directing Hamas fighters, whom they said posed an immediate threat to Israeli civilians. The strike has heightened tensions in the region.
Roughly 2,000 demonstrators gathered in Jerusalem on Monday for anti-government and pro-hostage deal rallies, leading to the arrest of 12 protesters amid clashes with police. This comes after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was summoned by police for questioning over his aides’ alleged ties to Qatar and two aides were taken into custody earlier in the day.
Additionally, the demonstrations come following government’s advancedment of controversial legislation aimed at overhauling the judiciary after moving to dismiss Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara and Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar. Critics say these measures, alongside the resumption of fighting in Gaza where 59 hostages remain, highlight a broader trend of governmental overreach.
Among those detained was the cousin of freed hostage Arbel Yehoud, who was reportedly violently arrested after cursing a police officer for allowing a counter-protester into a restricted area. Additionally, two protesters were detained for blocking traffic on Begin Highway, holding a banner that read, “What about the hostages?”
Protesters voiced their anguish over the continuing conflict, with Merav Svirsky, whose brother Itay was killed in captivity, condemning the government for sacrificing hostages: “I am here to cry out that right now, 59 men and women—24 of whom are still alive—are being sacrificed to their deaths by a criminal government.”
Multiple members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition have condemned his choice of former Navy commander Vice Adm. (res.) Eli Sharvit as the next head of the Shin Bet security service. The controversy centers on Sharvit’s participation in protests against the government’s judicial overhaul, with critics arguing that his appointment would perpetuate problematic ideologies.
Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu of Otzma Yehudit slammed the nomination, stating, “Replacing a person with a Kaplanist worldview with another person with a similar worldview does not solve the problem, but only perpetuates it in a different framework.” Likud lawmaker Tally Gotliv echoed these sentiments, asserting that Sharvit is “not suitable to head the Shin Bet” and predicting that the appointment will ultimately be abandoned in favor of a more qualified candidate.
Likud MK Nissim Vaturi added, “If he protests, he will not be the head of the Shin Bet. Let him continue to protest,” emphasizing that active dissent undermines the credibility needed to lead such a crucial institution.
Sources close to the prime minister suggest that Netanyahu is now reconsidering the controversial appointment, making it increasingly unlikely that Sharvit will replace current Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar.
Lebanese Army Commander General Rodolph Haykal announced Saturday that several suspects have been detained in connection with Friday’s rocket fire from southern Lebanon into northern Israel. During a visit to military posts along the border, Haykal said the army was investigating the incident and warned that such attacks ultimately serve “the enemy.”
Haykal reiterated the military’s commitment to defending Lebanon regardless of political or sectarian divisions and to enforcing UN Security Council Resolution 1701. He also accused Israel of hindering the army’s full deployment in the south by occupying Lebanese land and violating national sovereignty.
Israeli airstrikes on Friday targeted sites in southern Lebanon and a building in Beirut’s Dahieh district after the rocket fire. Lebanese sources reported six people killed and 21 injured. The strike in Dahieh—Hezbollah’s stronghold—was Israel’s first there since November and marked a sharp rise in tensions despite a truce brokered by the US and France last year.
