There is increasing anxiety about the expansion of the war in the Middle East after the official involvement of Hezbollah in the war that broke out in Israel after the surprise attack by Hamas. As the fighting continues, the Lebanese group Hezbollah issued a statement on Sunday claiming responsibility for attacking three Israeli sites in an area known as “Shebaa Farms” using rockets and artillery. “Shebaa Farms” is considered by Lebanon to be occupied by Israel.

The three sites include the Radar site, the Zabdin site and the Ruwaisat Al-Alam site, Hezbollah’s statement said. There were no immediate reports of casualties, however, this new development raises concerns about an escalation of hostilities. The Israeli army responded with fire and drones, where they hit a Hezbollah position near the Lebanon-Israel border.

At the same time, Israel is vowing harsh retaliation, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warning that it is launching a “long and difficult war”, while underscoring that responsibility for this war rests with Hamas.

“We will restore security for the citizens of Israel and we will win,” assured the Israeli prime minister, asking residents on the border with Gaza to leave their homes as soon as possible. Soon after, the Israeli army began to evacuate the border area. Thousands of people will be moved to other parts of Israel, said army spokesman Richard Hecht.

For his part, the leader of Hamas, in a speech, issued threats against the Al-Aqsa mosque, denouncing the ongoing blockade of Gaza and initiatives to normalize relations between Israel and Arab countries. “How many times have we warned you that Palestinians have been living in refugee camps for 75 years, yet you refuse to recognize the rights of our people?” he said, among other things.

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The Israeli military appears to be preparing for a ground invasion of the Gaza Strip, as the operation to free hostages and neutralize Hamas fighters still on Israeli soil was crowned with success. Israel is still in a state of shock, with dozens of people missing and believed to be hostages inside the blockaded Gaza Strip. A missing persons center has been set up near Ben Gurion Airport.

The death toll in Israel and Palestine continues to rise

At least 313 Palestinians have died in the Gaza Strip in Israeli attacks that followed the attack launched by the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas against Israel, the health ministry in Gaza announced today. Among the dead are 20 minors, according to the ministry, while at least 2,000 Palestinians have been injured. The Israel Defense Forces said the number of Israelis killed in the Hamas attack on Saturday had risen to 350. In a briefing on Sunday, IDF spokesman Vice Admiral Daniel Hagari said the priorities now were to end the fighting in Israeli communities and the control of violations in the fence separating Gaza and Israel.

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The Israelis target the Hamas intelligence headquarters

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) says warplanes have struck a compound in Gaza belonging to the head of Hamas’s intelligence department. “The IDF is currently continuing to strike terrorist targets in the Gaza Strip,” it added.

The IDF has released aerial footage of the operation showing the target is Hamas’s intelligence chief.

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Israeli forces hit 426 targets in Gaza, including 10 towers used by Hamas, IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari said at a briefing on Sunday as fighting raged in at least eight locations.

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Israel claims it has bombed important Palestinian infrastructure. The Israeli Air Force said it targeted two banks “owned by the terrorist organization Hamas for terrorist funds”, an “aerial weapons production” site belonging to the “terrorist organization Islamic Jihad” (a separate group of Hamas) and a building where weapons were stored and military equipment.

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At the same time, Hamas fighters claim they are still present in cities in southern Israel, according to a statement from the organization.

The UN Security Council will hold an emergency meeting today to discuss developments in the Middle East. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres appealed to the international community to make “diplomatic efforts to avoid a wider conflagration” in the region, due to the escalation of the conflict between Israel and Hamas.

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