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☆ Over 60% of illegal crypto activity is tied to sanctioned groups or terrorist organizations, report finds
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-29 | by ( Dylan Butts | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

The American blockchain analysis firm's "2024 Crypto Crime Report" found that $24.2 billion of illicit cryptocurrency was transferred in 2023, based on already identified illicit crypto wallets. Chainalysis retroactively updates its yearly crypto figures when new illicit wallets come to light. watch nowCrypto to avert sanctionsEntities like the crypto "mixer" Tornado Cash and Garantex took the lion's share of illicit funds in 2023. The amount of crypto transferred to sanctioned entities has climbed in recent years in tandem with a greater share of new trade restrictions specifying crypto wallets. Terrorist financingIllicit crypto volume identified by Chainalysis as terrorist financing accounted for a much smaller proportion than that of transactions to sanctioned entities in 2022.

Persons: Andrea Gacki, cryptocurrency, Chainalysis, Andrew Fierman, Garantex, Tornado Cash, Lazarus, Lazarus Group ., Sinbad.io, Chanalysis's Fierman, Tawfiq Muhammad Said Al, Law's, Hayat Tahrir Organizations: Foreign Assets, U.S . Department of, Treasury, Bloomberg, Getty, Hezbollah, CNBC, Tornado, Lazarus Group, U.S . Office, Foreign, Lazarus, National Bureau for, Iran's Quds Force, Al, ISIS, Hayat Locations: New York, Korean, Chainalysis, China, Latin America, North Korea, Iran, Iran's Quds, Syria, cryptocurrency

☆ What Is Hezbollah, the Group Backing Hamas Against Israel?
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-15 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +7 min

Lebanon's Hezbollah has been trading fire with Israeli forces across the frontier since its Palestinian ally Hamas in Gaza and Israel went to war on Oct. 7. The exchanges are the deadliest since a 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel. Both Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israel have said they do not seek all-out war, and the conflict has largely been contained to areas near the border. Hezbollah demonstrated its military advances in 2006 during a five-week war with Israel, which erupted after it crossed into Israel, kidnapping two soldiers and killing others. The Gaza conflict has rippled across the Middle East, where Hezbollah has inspired and supported other Iranian-backed groups.

Persons: Hossein Amirabdollahian, Bashar al, Assad, WHAT'S, Benjamin Netanyahu, Washington, Lebanese Shi'ites, Rafik al, Hariri, spiralled, Hassan Nasrallah, Tom Perry, Edmund Blair, William Maclean Organizations: Israel, Iran's, Guards, Islamic, Islamic Jihad, Hezbollah, United, . Marine, U.S . Locations: BEIRUT, Lebanon, Lebanese, Hamas, Gaza, Israel, Israeli, Nabatieh, al, Iran, Tehran, The U.S, Syria, ISRAEL, Irag, Yemen, U.S, Jordan . Saudi Arabia, LEBANON, Saudi, Beirut, United States

☆ Hezbollah Chief Says Shelling on Israel Will Stop Only When 'Aggression' on Gaza Ends
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-13 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

BEIRUT (Reuters) - The head of Lebanon's Hezbollah said on Tuesday that his armed group's cross-border shelling into Israel would only end when Israel's "aggression" on the Gaza Strip stops, saying diplomatic efforts so far to bring a halt to hostilities along Lebanon's border seemed to only benefit Israel. Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said his group would only stop its exchanges of fire if a full ceasefire was reached for Gaza. War in Israel and Gaza View All 206 Images"On that day, when the shooting stops in Gaza, we will stop the shooting in the south," he said in a televised address. The cross-border shelling has already killed around 200 people in Lebanon, including more than 170 Hezbollah fighters, as well as 10 Israeli troops and five Israeli civilians. Nasrallah said residents of northern Israel "will not return" to their homes, and threatened that even more would be displaced.

Persons: Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Nasrallah, Laila Bassam, Gebeily, Alex Richardson, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: Gaza, Hamas, Reuters Locations: BEIRUT, Israel, Iran, Gaza, Beirut, Lebanon, France, Britain

☆ Iran Foreign Minister Says Iran, U.S. Have Exchanged Messages in Recent Weeks
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-10 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Iran and the United States have exchanged messages throughout Israel's four-month-old war on Hamas in Gaza, including about Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, the Iranian foreign minister said on Saturday. "During this war and in the recent weeks, there was an exchange of messages between Iran and America," Hossein Amirabdollahian said through a translator at a press conference capping a day-long visit to Beirut. He said the United States had asked Tehran to request Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran, "not to get widely, fully involved in this war against" Israel. Amirabdollahian on Saturday warned Israel against taking any steps towards a broader war against Lebanon, saying that would be Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's "last day." He also said Iran saw a political solution as the only way to end the Gaza war.

Persons: Hossein Amirabdollahian, Hamas, Amirabdollahian, Benjamin Netanyahu's, Abdallah Bou Habib, Netanyahu, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah Hezbollah's Al, Nasrallah, Bashar al, Assad, Maya Gebeily, Andrew Cawthorne, Frances Kerry Organizations: Hezbollah, Israel, Saturday, Hamas, Revolutionary Guards Corps, Guards Locations: BEIRUT, Iran, United States, Gaza, America, Beirut, United, Tehran, Israel, Lebanese, Lebanon, Washington, Irag, Syria, Yemen, U.S, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Hamas

☆ Iraq's Nujaba Says It Will Continue Attacks on U.S. Forces
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-02 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The Iran-backed Iraqi armed group Nujaba said on Friday it will continue launching attacks on U.S. forces in the region until the Gaza war ends and U.S. forces exit Iraq, days after another major Iran-backed group said it was suspending such attacks. Iraq's shadowy Kataib Hezbollah said on Tuesday it would pause attacks on U.S. forces, a decision that followed the killing of three U.S. soldiers in a drone attack in Jordan near the Syrian border that Washington blamed on Iran-back militants. Part of Iran's so-called "Axis of Resistance," the umbrella group has claimed more than 150 attacks on U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria since the Gaza war began. In 2020, the U.S. killed Iran Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani and Kataib Hezbollah leader Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis in a drone strike at Baghdad airport. The strike came days after the U.S. blamed Kataib Hezbollah for the killing of a U.S. contractor.

Persons: Nujaba, Akram al, Ebrahim Raisi, Iran Quds, Qassem Soleimani, Abu Mahdi al, Kataib, Timour Azhari, Jana Choukeir, Michael Georgy, Nick Macfie Organizations: IRI, Iran, Iran Quds Force Locations: BAGHDAD, Iran, U.S, Gaza, Iraq, Jordan, Washington, Syria, Israel, Tehran, Baghdad, Dubai

Israel and Hezbollah each have lessons from their last war, in 2006, a monthlong conflict that ended in a draw. A United Nations resolution ending the war called for withdrawal of Israeli forces from Lebanon and a demilitarized zone on Lebanon's side of the border. Israeli political and military leaders have warned Hezbollah that war is increasingly probable unless the militants withdraw from the border. Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah hasn't threatened to initiate war but warned of a fight “without limits” if Israel does. Costs would rise sharply if there's war with Lebanon.

Persons: They've, U.N, Antonio Guterres, Hassan Nasrallah hasn't, Andrea Tenenti, Lisa Abou Khaled, ”, Tal Beeri, there's, Israel's, Orna Mizrahi, Netanyahu, Dina Arakji, ___ Lidman Organizations: United States, United, U.S, Bank of Israel, Alma Research, Education Center, Israel Democracy Institute, Institute for National Security Studies, Gaza's Health Ministry, Lebanese Locations: BEIRUT, Israel, Gaza, United, Lebanon, United Nations, Europe, Iran, Israel's, “, Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Beirut, ”, Tel Aviv

☆ Iran warns it will react decisively if attacked and won't 'leave any threat unanswered' as US plans response to American troops deaths
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-31 | by ( Ella Sherman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Read previewIranian military and diplomatic officials have warned the country will respond if attacked as the US readies for retaliatory action after American troop deaths. "We hear threatening words from American officials," Major General Salami said Thursday, according to the Islamic Republic News Agency. "You have tested us and we know each other," he said, adding that "we will not leave any threat unanswered." In 2020, a US drone strike killed top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani. "We are not looking for war, but we are not afraid of it either," the Iranian general said.

Persons: —, Hossein, Joe Biden, Biden, Amir Saeid Iravani, Biden's, Kata'ib, Abu Hussein al, Pat Ryder, Trump, Qassem, he's Organizations: Service, Islamic, Guards, Business, Islamic Republic News Agency, NBC, United Nations, Associated Press, Pentagon, US Locations: Iran, Jordan, Islamic Republic, Gaza, Qassem Soleimani

☆ Hezbollah Rejected US Overtures, Still Open to Diplomacy to Avoid Wider War
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-18 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +9 min

U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein has been leading a diplomatic outreach to restore security at the Israel-Lebanon frontier as the wider region teeters dangerously towards a major escalation of the conflict ignited by the Gaza war. Israel has also said it wants to avoid war, but both sides say they are ready to fight if necessary. Branded a terrorist organisation by Washington, Hezbollah has not been directly involved in talks, three Lebanese officials and a European diplomat said. Hezbollah has dismissed both ideas as unrealistic, the Lebanese officials and the diplomat said. Iran's foreign minister on Wednesday said attacks against Israel and its interests by the "Axis of Resistance" will stop if the Gaza war ends.

Persons: Laila Bassam, Maya Gebeily, Amos Hochstein, Hochstein, Israel, Spokespeople, Eylon Levy, Najib Mikati, Mikati, Hamas, Mohanad Hage Ali, Hage Ali, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Nasrallah, Gebeily, Dan Williams, Tom Perry, Steve Holland, Edtiing, Frank Jack Daniel Organizations: U.S, Yemen's, Reuters, Hezbollah, Lebanese, Iran's, Guards, Carnegie Middle East Center Locations: Maya, Maya Gebeily BEIRUT, Iran, Israel, Lebanon, Gaza, Yemen's Iran, Red Sea, U.S, Lebanese, Beirut, Jan, Washington, European, Hochstein, United States, IRAN, Syria, Iraq, Tehran, France, Jerusalem

☆ The Israel-Hamas war has already forced U.S. military action. Is war with Hezbollah next?
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-16 | by ( Natasha Turak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Picture Alliance | Picture Alliance | Getty ImagesIs a wider Middle East war — expanding beyond the borders of Gaza and Israel — inevitable? An all-out war between Israel and Hezbollah — the Iranian-backed Lebanese Shia militant organization designated as a terrorist group by the U.S. and UK — would be devastating for both sides. Lebanon, meanwhile, is in the midst of economic and political crisis, its infrastructure wholly unprepared for a new war. Evelyn Hockstein | Afp | Getty ImagesFor Charles Freilich, a former Israeli deputy national security adviser, war between Israel and Hezbollah is practically a foregone conclusion. But, he warned, "The war in Gaza pales in comparison to what a war with Hezbollah would look like.

Persons: Wissam tawil, Antony Blinken, Evelyn Hockstein, Charles Freilich, Freilich, Nimrod Novik, Hassan Nasrallah, Israel —, Naim Qassem, Wissam Tawil, Mahmoud Zayyat Organizations: Iranian, Getty, Israeli Air Force, State Department, Jan, Hezbollah, U.S, Afp, Haaretz, Israel Policy Forum Locations: Lebanese, Khirbit, Gaza, Israel, Lebanon, Yemen, Iran, Red, . Washington, Doha, Tel Aviv, Kherbet Selm

Sunday's missile strike came a day after the Israeli army said it killed three militants who had crossed into Israel from Lebanon and attempted to carry out an attack. The latest attacks on Israel, including the deaths of two civilians on Sunday, raised the likelihood of new Israeli reprisals. More than 115,000 Israelis have evacuated from northern Israel due to the ongoing tensions. In Israel, 12 soldiers and seven civilians have died from rocket launches from Lebanon, and more than 170 were injured. Hezbollah has reported at least 150 fighters and 20 civilians have been killed in the near-daily exchanges of fire.

Persons: Yemen’s, Hassan Nasrallah, ” Nasrallah, Israel, Netanyahu, Yuval, SHIELDS, Joe Biden’s, Antony Blinken, Khan Younis, ”, Rami Abu Matouq, ___ Magdy, Chehayeb, Abby Sewell Organizations: JERUSALEM, Sunday, International Court of Justice, Hamas, Islamic Glory Brigades, Associated Press, Islamic, Dublin, White, U.S, Gaza Health Ministry Locations: Israel, Lebanon, Gaza, Iran, Syria, Iraq, U.S, South Africa, Hague, Tel Aviv, Beirut, Jan, Yuval, Israeli, Golan, Islamic Jihad, SHIELDS ISRAEL, Washington , London, Paris, Rome, Milan, ISRAEL, Egypt, United States, Rafah, U.N, Cairo, israel

☆ Israeli strike kills two reporters, third person in south Lebanon - state media, PM
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BEIRUT, Nov 21 (Reuters) - An Israeli strike killed two journalists working for a Lebanese TV channel and a third person near the border with Israel on Tuesday, Lebanese state media and the channel, Al Mayadeen, said. Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati also blamed Israel, saying in a statement that the strike was an Israeli attempt to silence the media. A second Israeli strike on a car about seven miles from the border and near the southern Lebanese city of Tyre killed four people later in the day, the state news agency reported. Al Mayadeen named its killed journalists as Farah Omar, a correspondent, and Rabie al-Memari, a camera operator. The third person killed in the strike was Hussein Aqil, who was at the site where the crew was filming.

Persons: Al Mayadeen, Najib Mikati, Israel, Farah Omar, Rabie, Hussein Aqil, John Davison, Jana Choukeir, Andrew Heavens, Alex Richardson, Nick Macfie Organizations: Lebanese, Hezbollah, Hamas, Reuters, Protect Journalists, Thomson Locations: BEIRUT, Israeli, Lebanese, Israel, Tir, Tyre, Iran, Hamas, Gaza, Lebanon, United States

☆ German police raid Iran-linked centre over suspected Hezbollah support
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] German police officers walk towards the Islamic Center Hamburg, during a raid, due to suspicion of members acting against a constitutional order and supporting the militant group Hezbollah in Hamburg, Germany, November 16, 2023. REUTERS/Fabian Bimmer Acquire Licensing RightsBERLIN, Nov 16 (Reuters) - German police conducted raids early on Thursday in seven states over the Islamic Centre of Hamburg's suspected support for the militant group Hezbollah, the interior ministry said. "I want to make clear that we are acting against Islamists, not against a religion or another state," said German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser. In Hamburg alone, 300 officers conducted 31 searches in connection with the centre, the city's interior senator said. "The suspicions against the Islamic Centre of Hamburg are serious," and it has long been monitored by the domestic intelligence agency for Islamist activities, said Faeser.

Persons: Fabian Bimmer, Nancy Faeser, Linda Pasquini, Miranda Murray, Madeline Chambers, Edmund Klamann Organizations: Islamic Center, Hezbollah, REUTERS, Rights, Islamic, Authorities, of, Lebanese, Thomson Locations: Islamic Center Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany, Israel, Gaza, Iran, of Hamburg

The conflict is also testing the limits of the regional coalition whose members - which include the Syrian government, Hezbollah, Hamas and other militant groups from Iraq to Yemen - have differing priorities and domestic challenges. On Oct. 7, Hamas' military commander Mohammed Deif called on its axis allies to join the struggle. Yet, like its backer Iran, Hezbollah has avoided an all-out confrontation. Iran does not recognise Israel's existence, while Israel has long threatened military action against Iran if diplomacy fails to curb its disputed nuclear activity. "Iran has shown a four-decade commitment to fighting America and Israel without entering into direct conflict.

Persons: Ali Khamenei, Ismail Haniyeh, wouldn't, Yemen's Houthis, Mohanad Hage Ali, Israel, Mohammed Deif, Khaled Meshaal, Dennis Ross, Hamas didn't, didn't, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Joe Biden, Lloyd Austin, Yoav Gallant, Israel didn't, Karim Sadjadpour, Parisa Hafezi, Laila Bassam, Arshad Mohammed, Tom Perry, Jonathan Saul, Idrees Ali, Phil Stewart, Pravin Organizations: Israel, Reuters, Hezbollah, Carnegie Middle East Center, Hamas, Washington Institute for Near, Iran, AMERICA, United, U.S, Pentagon ., . Defense, NORTH Austin, Carnegie Endowment, International, Thomson Locations: DUBAI, Tehran, Israel, Iran, Palestinian, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Beirut, Gaza, Lebanon, Palestine, United States, U.S, East, Iranian, Afghanistan, Seoul, ISRAEL, America, Dubai, Saint Paul, Jerusalem, Washington

☆ Fact Check: Hezbollah anti-ship missiles clip dates to 2019, not 2023
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-13 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

An old video of Shi’ite Islamist group Hezbollah’s anti-ship missiles has been falsely shared as footage published in response to U.S. deployment of carriers to the eastern Mediterranean amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war in 2023. Experts believe that the Iranian-backed Hezbollah group in Lebanon may possess more than 100,000 rockets including precision missiles, such as drones and anti-tank, anti-aircraft and anti-ship missiles. However, the circulating video long predates the 2023 Israel-Hamas war. The caption states: “The video Footage depicting C-802 anti-ship cruise missiles has been resealed for the first time. The video of Hezbollah's anti-ship missiles was published in 2019, not during the 2023 Israel-Hamas war in response to the presence of U.S. carriers.

Persons: Gerald R, Dwight Eisenhower, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, “, Read Organizations: Hamas, Ford, Reuters, Facebook, Iran Press News Agency, Thomson Locations: Israel, Palestinian, U.S, Lebanon, Lebanese

☆ Lebanon front with Israel heats up, stoking fears of wider war
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Israeli strikes killed two people in south Lebanon on Monday, according to a first-responder organisation affiliated to the Hezbollah-allied Amal Movement. Hezbollah has been trading fire with Israeli forces since its Palestinian ally Hamas went to war with Israel on Oct. 7. The exchanges mark the deadliest violence at the border since Israel and Hezbollah fought a month-long war in 2006. So far, more than 70 Hezbollah fighters and 10 civilians have been killed in Lebanon, and 10 people including seven troops have been killed in Israel. The 2006 war killed 1,200 people in Lebanon, mostly civilians, and 157 Israelis, mostly soldiers.

Persons: Israel, Hamas, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Benjamin Netanyahu, Yoav Gallant, Nasrallah, Najib Mikati, Al, Lloyd Austin, Mohanad Hage Ali, Phil Stewart, Crispian Balmer, Dan Williams, Edmund Blair Organizations: Amal, Israel Electric Company, Hezbollah, United, Israeli, U.S . Defense, Carnegie Middle East Center, Thomson Locations: Israel, BEIRUT, JERUSALEM, Lebanese, Iran, Lebanon, Gaza, United States, Beirut, Al Jazeera, Israel's, Seoul, U.S, Jerusalem

☆ Israel sharpens warning to Lebanon as cross-border hostilities spike
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-12 | by ( Dan Williams | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The chief Israeli military spokesperson, Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, described Hezbollah as "the defender of Hamas-ISIS", in reference to the Islamist Palestinian faction whose cross-border rampage against Israel on Oct. 7 sparked a devastating Gaza war. Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah on Saturday described the Israel front as "active". A rocket set off sirens near the Israeli port city of Haifa, 27 km (17 miles) from the Lebanese border, but caused no casualties. Smoke rises as seen from Israel-Lebanon border in northern Israel, November 12, 2023. Residents of villages and towns on the Lebanese border have evacuated southward even as Gaza border communities hit by Hamas emptied, making for some 250,000 internally displaced Israelis.

Persons: Daniel Hagari, Hassan Nasrallah, Israel, Evelyn Hockstein, Rights Israel, Hagari, Antonio Guterres, Fareed Zakaria, Guterres, Maayan Lubell, Crispian Balmer, Giles Elgood Organizations: ISIS, Palestinian, Saturday, Sunday, Lebanese, REUTERS, Rights, IDF, Thomson Locations: Israel, Gaza, Haifa, Lebanese, Lebanon, Beirut, Iran

☆ Hezbollah Says Front With Israel Will Remain Active
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-11 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

BEIRUT (Reuters) - The head of Lebanon's powerful Hezbollah said on Saturday that his armed group had used new types of weapons and struck new targets in Israel in recent days, and pledged that the front in the south against its sworn enemy would remain active. It was Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah's second speech since the war between Israel and Hamas began in October. Nasrallah said on Saturday there had been "an upgrade" in Hezbollah's operations along its front with Israel. But the tit-for-tat shelling has been largely restricted to the border and Hezbollah has mostly struck military targets. Israel tightened its siege of Hamas-ruled Gaza following the Oct. 7 cross-border assault by the group that Israel says killed around 1,200, with about 240 abducted as hostages back to the Palestinian enclave.

Persons: Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah's, Nasrallah, Israel, Laila Bassam, Giles Elgood Organizations: Hamas, Lebanese, Iran's, Guards Locations: BEIRUT, Israel, Kiryat Shmona, Tehran, United States, Gaza

☆ Hezbollah says front with Israel will remain active
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah addresses his supporters through a screen during a rally commemorating the annual Hezbollah Martyrs' Day, in Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon November 11, 2023. REUTERS/Aziz Taher Acquire Licensing RightsBEIRUT, Nov 11 (Reuters) - The head of Lebanon's powerful Hezbollah said on Saturday that his armed group had used new types of weapons and struck new targets in Israel in recent days, and pledged that the front in the south against its sworn enemy would remain active. It was Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah's second speech since the war between Israel and Hamas began in October. But the tit-for-tat shelling has been largely restricted to the border and Hezbollah has mostly struck military targets. Israel tightened its siege of Hamas-ruled Gaza following the Oct. 7 cross-border assault by the group that Israel says killed around 1,200, with about 240 abducted as hostages back to the Palestinian enclave.

Persons: Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Aziz Taher, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah's, Nasrallah, Israel, Laila Bassam, Giles Elgood Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Hamas, Lebanese, Iran's, Guards, Thomson Locations: Beirut's, Lebanon, Rights BEIRUT, Israel, Kiryat Shmona, Tehran, United States, Gaza

☆ The US carrier groups posted near Israel could be under threat from Hezbollah's new anti-ship missiles: report
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-09 | by ( Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Lebanon-based militant group Hezbollah has Russian anti-ship missiles, Reuters claims. The missiles could be used to target US carrier groups deployed in the Middle East, it said. Tensions are escalating in the wake of the October 7 attacks on Israel. AdvertisementAdvertisementThe Lebanon-based militant group Hezbollah has obtained Russian anti-ship missiles capable of targeting US carrier groups posted near Israel, Reuters reported. The US deployed two aircraft carrier groups to the region in a bid to stop the conflict from escalating.

Persons: —, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Nasrallah, Bashar al, Dmitry Peskov, Gerald R Ford, Dwight D, Eisenhower Organizations: Hezbollah, Service, Reuters, Pentagon, US, Ford Locations: Lebanon, Russian, Israel, Gaza, Iran

Two sources in Lebanon familiar with the Iran-backed group's arsenal say he was referring to Hezbollah's greatly enhanced anti-ship missile capabilities, including the Russian-made Yakhont missile with a range of 300 km (186 miles). Hezbollah perceives the U.S. warships as a direct threat because of their ability to hit the group and its allies. PAYING ATTENTIONThree current and one former U.S. official said Hezbollah has built an impressive array of weapons, including anti-ship missiles. Asked about the sources' accounts of Hezbollah having acquired Yakhont missiles, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "First of all, this is news without any confirmation at all. Moscow said in 2010 it had signed a deal to send anti-ship cruise missiles including a version of the Yakhont to Damascus.

Persons: Aziz Taher, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Washington, Bashar al, Assad, Nasrallah, We're, Dmitry Peskov, Nasser Qandil, Qandil, Idrees Ali, Phil Stewart, John Davison, Maya Gebeily, Guy Faulconbridge, Tom Perry, Claudia Parsons Organizations: REUTERS, Group, U.S, Yakhont, Hamas, Hezbollah, Pentagon, Friday, Washington -, Strategic, International Studies, CSIS, Reuters, Marines, Thomson Locations: Aaramta, Lebanon, Russian, Syria, States, U.S, BEIRUT, Israel, Iran, Washington, Jihad, United States, Gaza, Lebanese, Iraq, Beirut, Russia, Hezbollah, Moscow, Damascus

☆ Hezbollah MP: group will respond 'double' over Lebanese civilians hurt
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra Acquire Licensing RightsBEIRUT, Nov 7 (Reuters) - A Hezbollah lawmaker said on Tuesday that the Lebanese militant group would respond "double" to any Israeli attacks on civilians after a strike that killed three children and their grandmother in south Lebanon. "The resistance will respond double to any aggression that targets civilians," Ali Fayyad said at the funeral of the four Lebanese killed in the south on Sunday. Lebanese authorities said an Israeli strike hit the car the family was travelling in on Sunday. Israel said on Monday it struck Hezbollah targets in response to a large barrage of rockets fired at northern Israeli cities. The violence along the Lebanese border has killed more than 60 Hezbollah fighters and 10 civilians, Lebanese security officials say.

Persons: Zohra, Ali Fayyad, Israel bombards, Israel, Laila Bassam, John Davison, Angus MacSwan Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Lebanese, Thomson Locations: Israeli, Blida, Lebanon, Rights BEIRUT, Lebanese, Iran, Israel, Gaza, Hamas

☆ Lebanon Must Be Kept Out of Hamas-Israel War, Patriarch Says
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-06 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Lebanon's top Christian cleric urged state officials on Monday to shield Lebanon from the war between Palestinian Islamist group Hamas and Israel, as the Lebanese Shi'ite group Hezbollah clashes with Israeli forces at the border. The Iran-backed Hezbollah has been exchanging fire with Israeli forces across the Lebanese-Israeli frontier since the Hamas-Israel war began on Oct. 7, in the worst fighting there since Hezbollah and Israel fought a war in 2006. He called on Lebanese state officials to work to keep Lebanon away "from the scourge of this war ... and to carry out its political and diplomatic role in support of the Palestinian cause. Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, in his first speech since the start of the Israel-Hamas war, said on Friday escalation on the Lebanon front would hinge on events in Gaza and Israeli actions towards Lebanon. Hezbollah's supporters say its arsenal has defended Lebanon from Israel.

Persons: Israel, Long, Bechara Boutros Al, Rai, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbollah's, Tom Perry, Mark Heinrich Organizations: Palestinian, Hamas, Maronite, Security Locations: BEIRUT, Lebanon, Israel, Lebanese, Iran, Gaza

☆ Blinken visits Iraq in bid to prevent Gaza spillover
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Washington wants to prevent a wider regional conflict and has stepped up diplomacy with regional countries whose populations have been angered by Israel's assault on Gaza. Blinken landed at Baghdad’s international airport, donned a ballistic vest and traveled by Black Hawk helicopter to the Green Zone, a remnant of the U.S. occupation of Iraq after its 2003 invasion. At the U.S. ambassador’s residence he was briefed on threats to U.S. facilities, before heading to the prime minister’s office. Iran-backed group Kataib Hezbollah issued a warning on Saturday night that the expected Blinken visit would be met with "an unprecedented escalation." Iraqi armed groups aligned with Iran have threatened to target U.S. interests with missiles and drones if Washington intervened to support Israel against Hamas in Gaza.

Persons: Antony Blinken, Mohammed Shia, Al Sudani, Blinken, Mohammed al, Sudani, Asad, Hezbollah's, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Simon Lewis, Hugh Lawson, Conor Humphries Organizations: Hamas, West Bank, U.S, Iraqi, Baghdad’s, Black, Green, Thomson Locations: Baghdad, Israel, Palestinian, Iraq, BAGHDAD, . Washington, Gaza, Turkey, Iran, Syria, Gaza . Iraqi, Ain, Harir, Iraqi, Erbil, Lebanon, U.S

☆ Blinken Visits Iraq in Bid to Prevent Gaza Spillover
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-05 | by ( Nov. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

Persons: Antony Blinken, Blinken, Mohammed al, Sudani, Asad, Hezbollah's, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Simon Lewis, Hugh Lawson, Conor Humphries Organizations: West Bank, U.S, Iraqi, Baghdad’s, Black, Green Locations: BAGHDAD, Iraq, Israel, Baghdad, . Washington, Gaza, Turkey, Iran, Syria, Gaza . Iraqi, Ain, Harir, Iraqi, Erbil, Lebanon, U.S

☆ Israeli Jets Hit Lebanon as Hezbollah Fires More Powerful Missile
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-04 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Lebanon's Hezbollah said it carried out simultaneous attacks on Israeli positions at the Lebanese border on Saturday, as residents of south Lebanon reported some of the fiercest Israeli strikes yet during weeks of cross-border clashes. Hezbollah has been exchanging fire with Israeli forces across the Lebanese-Israeli frontier since its Palestinian ally Hamas went to war with Israel on Oct. 7. Security sources and witnesses in Lebanon reported some of the heaviest Israeli strikes yet. The Israeli army said among the targets struck were "terrorist infrastructure, rocket caches, and compounds used by" Hezbollah. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last month warned Hezbollah against opening a second war front, saying that doing so would bring Israeli counter-strikes of "unimaginable" magnitude that would wreak "devastation" upon Lebanon.

Persons: Hamas, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Fouad Khreis, Benjamin Netanyahu, Laila Bassam, Dan Williams, Tom Perry, Ros Russell Organizations: Reuters, Khiyam, Hezbollah Locations: BEIRUT, Lebanese, Lebanon, Ayta, Rmeich, Israel, Gaza, Khiyam‮, Khiyam, Israeli, Beirut, Jerusalem

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