Foreigners Are Aware to Leave Lebanon Due to Growing War Fears

Iran and its allies were preparing to respond to high-profile assassinations that they claimed were the result of Israel, and calls were growing urgently for foreign nationals to evacuate Lebanon, which would be at the forefront of a regional war.

A regional military escalation must be prevented “at all costs,” according to Jordan’s King Abdullah II and France’s Emmanuel Macron, who made this declaration during a phone conversation on Sunday while diplomats attempted to stop the anticipated conflagration.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant declared: “If they dare to attack us, they will pay a heavy price” in light of the widespread expectation of significant military action from Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement, which is supported by Iran, and others.

The conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, which has lasted for almost ten months, has already resulted in frequent violent outbursts in the area.

The Civil Defense organization reported that an Israeli strike on two Gaza City schools housing displaced persons resulted in at least 30 deaths in the bloodiest incident that occurred in Gaza on Sunday.

This raises the total number of Gaza schools affected by at least 11 since July 6.

The Israeli army said that Hamas was making use of the schools when it confirmed the most recent attack.

Police and emergency personnel reported that two persons had died in a stabbing attack close to Tel Aviv, the commercial center of Israel.

Police “neutralized” the attacker, a Palestinian from the Israeli-occupied West Bank, and took him to the hospital, where he was declared deceased.

Extremely erratic

Hezbollah, which has been exchanging gunfire with Israeli forces almost every day since the Gaza conflict began in October, revealed the whereabouts of the deaths of two of its fighters.

Two individuals were killed in an Israeli strike on the southern border village of Hula, according to the Lebanese health ministry.

Following Hezbollah’s claim that it had launched a new round of rockets at northern Israel, the official National News Agency of Lebanon reported on Israeli strikes on many locations in south Lebanon.

The majority of the thirty rockets fired from Lebanon, according to the Israeli military, were intercepted.

In the Upper Galilee region of northern Israel, sirens began to sound early on Monday after the Israeli military reported that “many suspicious aerial targets were identified crossing from Lebanon.”

According to a Telegram post, the attack started a fire, and two soldiers and an officer were “moderately injured.”

According to an AFP count, since October, cross-border fighting in Lebanon has claimed the lives of about 547 individuals, mostly fighters but also 115 civilians.

The latest nations to urge its nationals to leave Lebanon are Saudi Arabia and France.

The French foreign ministry “urgently asked” its citizens not to travel to Lebanon “in a highly volatile security context” and advised those who were already there to depart “as soon as possible.”

Additionally, France asked its citizens residing in Iran to “temporarily leave.”

There are no longer any flights from a number of Western carriers to Lebanon or other nearby airports.

The Doha-Beirut route would, according to Qatar Airways, “operate exclusively during daylight hours” at least through Monday.

Hopes for a ceasefire dwindled.

Hours after Israel killed Hezbollah’s military chief Fuad Shukr in Beirut, Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of Hamas, was assassinated in Tehran on Wednesday. This has led to threats of revenge from Iran and the “axis of resistance,” an alliance of armed groups supported by Tehran.

Israel has not immediately responded to the strike, despite being charged with Haniyeh’s death by Iran, Hamas, and other groups.

In reaction for Hamas’ historic October 7 attack on Israel, which claimed 1,197 lives, the majority of them civilians, an AFP count based on Israeli government data stated that Israel has pledged to destroy Hamas.

In addition, 251 hostages were taken by militants; 111 of whom are still detained in Gaza, 39 of whom the military claims are dead.

The health ministry of Gaza reports that Israel’s retaliatory campaign has killed at least 39,583 Palestinians; it does not provide information on the number of civilian and militant casualties.

Leading Hamas negotiator in attempts to bring the war to an end was Haniyeh. According to Middle East specialist Andreas Krieg, his and Shukr’s deaths “does not suggest Israel is sincerely interested in a ceasefire.”

For months, US, Egyptian, and Qatari mediators have attempted to mediate a cease-fire and hostage-release agreement.

“The greatest danger”

While Tehran stated it expects Hezbollah to strike deeper within Israel and no longer be limited to military targets, analysts told AFP that a coordinated but calibrated response from Iran and its allies was probable.

The United States, an ally of Israel, announced that it was deploying more fighter jets and warships to the area.

White House Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer stated in an interview with ABC News that the US was “doing everything possible to make sure that this situation does not boil over.”

A peace agreement in Gaza must be concluded “so urgently” as part of those efforts, according to Finer.

In a conversation with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohamed Shia al-Sudani, Secretary of State Antony Blinken emphasized the need to defuse tensions in the region after certain Iran-aligned forces had earlier in the Gaza war targeted US troops.

During a rare visit to Tehran, Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi met President Masoud Pezeshkian and had “consultations” with Iran’s acting top diplomat, Ali Bagheri, according to local media.

According to Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, the G7 group of democracies expressed “strong concern” over the danger of escalation during their videoconference to discuss the Middle East.

“The greatest danger”

While Tehran declared that it anticipates Hezbollah to launch strikes inside Israel rather than just on military targets, experts told AFP that Iran and its allies would likely respond in a planned but measured manner.

Israel’s ally, the United States, declared that it was sending more fighter jets and warships to the region.

In an interview with ABC News, White House Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer said that the US was “doing everything possible to make sure that this situation does not boil over.”