Iran in diplomatic push to limit Israel’s retaliation

Iran's parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf visiting the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted Beirut's Basta neighbourhood
Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf visiting the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted Beirut’s Basta neighbourhood - AFP via Getty Images

Iran is making a diplomatic push to limit Israel’s retaliation to its missile strike earlier this month, according to sources familiar with the matter.

Tehran’s government is said to be “extremely nervous” and engaging in urgent diplomatic efforts with Middle Eastern countries to see whether it can reduce the scale of Israel’s response

Its anxiety stems from uncertainty about whether the US can convince Israel not to strike Iranian nuclear sites and oil facilities, and because its most important proxy militia in the region, Hezbollah, has been significantly weakened in recent weeks, the source told CNN.

Israel has repeatedly said it will respond to Iran’s missile barrage on Oct 1, launched itself in response to Israeli strikes in Lebanon and Gaza, and the assassination of its allies, including Hamas’ Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, and Hezbollah’s powerful leader, Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut.

The Iranian attack, which saw more than 200 ballistic missiles fired at Israel, caused little damage.

Nonetheless, Yoav Gallant, the Israeli defence minister, vowed this week that his country’s response would be “deadly, precise and surprising”. “They will not understand what happened and how it happened,” he added.

US officials now believe that Israel has narrowed down what it will target in its response, thought to be military and energy infrastructure, and have said that the Israeli military is ready to go at any time once the order is given.

There is no indication that the IDF will target nuclear facilities, the sources said when speaking to NBC, but they admitted that had not been provided with specific details.

US officials have continued to urge the Israeli government to make their response proportional, sticking to military targets and avoiding oil, gas and nuclear facilities.

Lloyd Austin, the US secretary of defence, spoke with Mr Gallant on Friday night during which they discussed broad strokes about an Israeli response.

In their first conversation in almost two months on Wednesday, Joe Biden, the US president, also told Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, that retaliation should be “proportional.”

Mr Biden reportedly urged Mr Netanyahu to focus on the humanitarian situation in Gaza and in Lebanon, and urged him to bring an end to the fighting. He is said to have also stressed that it would be difficult to successfully carry out the war in Lebanon and face a strong threat on a second front from Iran.

The Gulf states are mostly eager to stay on the sidelines of the conflict, an Arab diplomat told CNN, and it is unlikely that Iran’s neighbours would explicitly come to Tehran’s defence in the event of an Israeli attack.

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar have, however, said they will not allow Israel to use their airspace to strike Iran.


05:07 PM BST

That’s all for today

Thank you for following our live coverage. The key developments from the day were:

  • Iran is making a diplomatic push to limit Israel’s retaliation to its missile strike earlier this month. Tehran’s government is said to be “extremely nervous” and engaging in urgent diplomatic efforts with Middle Eastern countries to see whether they can reduce the scale of Israel’s response.

  • Lebanon’s health ministry said Israeli strikes on two villages Saturday, one north of Beirut and another south of the capital, killed at least nine people.

  • The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon said Saturday that unknown gunfire a day earlier hit a peacekeeper, the fifth wounded in south Lebanon near the Israeli border in just two days.

  • The Israeli military warned residents of south Lebanon “not to return” to their homes as troops continued fighting Hezbollah in the area.

  • The United Nations food agency said on Saturday that no food aid had entered northern Gaza since October 1. The World Food Programme said that the primary border crossing into the war-ravaged area had been closed for about two weeks, warning that Israel’s ongoing ground operation has a disastrous impact on food security for thousands of Palestinian families there.

  • US forces conducted airstrikes against multiple Islamic State group sites in Syria, its military said. “The strikes will disrupt the ability of ISIS to plan, organise, and conduct attacks against the United States, its allies and partners, and civilians throughout the region and beyond,” it said.

  • Israeli military strikes on Gaza overnight killed at least 19 Palestinians, according to medics, while forces continued to push deeper into the Jabalia area, where international relief agencies say thousands of people are trapped.

  • Simon Harris, the Irish prime minister, urged Israel to heed “the concerns of the international community” and “stop firing on UN peacekeepers”.

  • Russia, Syria and Iran should take more effective measures to protect Syria’s territorial integrity, Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan said, when asked about Israel’s recent strike on Damascus.

  • Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf visited the site of the deadliest Israeli strike on central Beirut in recent weeks, accompanied by two Hezbollah lawmakers.

  • The Welsh national party has declared Israel an “apartheid regime” guilty of “genocide, ethnic cleansing and war crimes” during its autumn conference in Cardiff.


04:42 PM BST

In pictures: Airstrikes on Beirut

Beirut's southern suburbs after Israeli air strikes
Beirut’s southern suburbs after Israeli air strikes on Saturday - REUTERS/Louisa Gouliamaki
A photograph taken from the Lebanese city of Tyre
A photograph taken from the Lebanese city of Tyre - KAWNAT HAJU/AFP via Getty Images

04:10 PM BST

Lebanon says nine dead in Israeli strikes on two villages

Lebanon’s health ministry said Israeli strikes on two villages Saturday, one north of Beirut and another south of the capital, killed at least nine people.

An “Israeli enemy strike on Maaysra”, a Shiite Islam majority village in a mostly Christian mountain area north of Beirut, killed “five people and wounded 14 others”, the ministry said in a statement, adding separately that “four people were killed and 14 others wounded” in an “Israeli enemy strike” on Barja in the Shouf district south of the capital.


03:53 PM BST

UN peacekeepers in Lebanon warn against ’catastrophic’ regional conflict

A spokesperson for the UN peacekeepers in Lebanon on Saturday said he feared an Israeli escalation against Lebanese militants Hezbollah in the country’s south could soon spiral out of control.

This risks “turning very soon into a regional conflict with catastrophic impact for everyone,” Unifil spokesperson Andrea Tenenti told Agence France-Presse, calling for a diplomatic solution.


03:37 PM BST

Plaid Cymru members call for a boycott of Israel over Gaza war

The Welsh national party has declared Israel an “apartheid regime” guilty of “genocide, ethnic cleansing and war crimes” during its autumn conference in Cardiff on Saturday.

A motion put forward by the party’s four MPs called for the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador from the UK “until such time as the Israeli government ends its apartheid and illegal actions (in Gaza)”, and for the Government to ban arms sales to the country.

Proposing the motion – which was supported unanimously – Ben Lake, MP for Ceredigion Preseli, said the war urgently needed a political settlement, including recognition of a Palestinian state.

He said: “If we want to see a safer world, then international law needs to be respected.”

The motion states that members of Plaid believe there must be an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, for hostages to be freed and an end to the occupation of Palestine. It calls for the UK to support the work of the International Criminal Court in investigating potential war crimes committed by Hamas and the Israeli government.

The motion also calls for all members of Plaid Cymru, as well as Welsh national sporting and cultural bodies, to support an “economic and cultural boycott” of Israel.


02:53 PM BST

UN reports fifth peacekeeper wounded in Lebanon

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil) said Saturday that unknown gunfire a day earlier hit a peacekeeper, the fifth wounded in south Lebanon near the Israeli border in just two days.

“Last night, a peacekeeper at Unifil’s headquarters” in Naqura “was hit by gunfire due to ongoing military activity nearby... We do not yet know the origin of the fire,” a statement said, adding that the peacekeeper was “stable”.


02:40 PM BST

UN force tells AFP ‘lot of damage’ to south Lebanon positions

A spokesman for UN peacekeepers in Lebanon said Saturday that Israel-Hezbollah clashes in the south of the country had inflicted “a lot of damage” on its positions.

Working is “very difficult because there is a lot of damage, even inside the bases,” UNIFIL spokesman Andrea Tenenti told AFP.

“Just last night, on the position of the Ghanaian peacekeepers, just outside, the blast was so strong that it destroyed some of the containers inside very badly,” she added.


02:23 PM BST

UN force says it refused Israeli requests to quit south Lebanon positions

A spokesman for UN peacekeepers in Lebanon said Israel had requested it leave its positions in south Lebanon where Israel is clashing with Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, but they had refused.

They asked us to withdraw “from the positions along the Blue Line... or up to five kilometers (three miles) from the Blue Line,” UNIFIL spokesman Andrea Tenenti told AFP, using the term for the demarcation line between both countries. “But there was a unanimous decision to stay.”


02:12 PM BST

EU concerns over Israeli legislation that would ban UNRWA

The European Union said it was deeply concerned about draft Israeli legislation that would ban the UN agency for Palestinian refugees from operating in Israel and likely scale back aid distribution across war-ravaged Gaza.

Earlier this week, an Israeli parliamentary committee approved a pair of bills this week that would ban UNRWA from operating in Israeli territory and end all contact between the government and the UN agency. The bill needs final approval from the Knesset, Israel’s parliament.

“If adopted, (the bill) would have disastrous consequences, preventing the UN agency from continuing to provide its services and protection to Palestinian refugees in the occupied West Bank, including east Jerusalem, and Gaza,” the EU said.

The UN agency has been the main supplier of food, water and shelter to Palestinian civilians during the 12 month conflict in Gaza.

Israel has alleged that some of UNRWA’s thousands of staff members participated in the Oct 7, 2023, Hamas attack that sparked the Israel-Hamas war/ The UN has since fired more than a dozen staffers after internal investigations found they may have taken part in the attack that killed 1,200 people in southern Israel.


01:54 PM BST

No food has entered northern Gaza since 1 October, says UN

The United Nations food agency said on Saturday that no food aid had entered northern Gaza since 1 October.

The World Food Programme said that the primary border crossing into the war-ravaged area had been closed for about two weeks, warning that Israel’s ongoing ground operation has a disastrous impact on food security for thousands of Palestinian families there.


01:42 PM BST

In pictures: Displaced Palestinians flee areas in the north

Palestinian children sit atop their family's belongings as they flee northern Gaza
Palestinian children sit atop their family’s belongings as they flee northern Gaza - OMAR AL-QATTAA/AFP via Getty Images
The Israeli military has launched an intense ground and air assault in northern Gaza in recent days
The Israeli military has launched an intense ground and air assault in northern Gaza in recent days - OMAR AL-QATTAA/AFP via Getty Images

01:37 PM BST

Iran bans pagers on flights after Lebanon attacks

Iran has banned pagers and walkie-talkies on all flights, weeks after deadly sabotage attacks in Lebanon which were blamed on Israel.

“The entry of any electronic communication device, except mobile phones, in flight cabins or ... in non-accompanied cargo, has been banned,” ISNA news agency reported, citing the spokesman for Iran’s Civil Aviation Organisation Jafar Yazerlo.

The decision came over three weeks since sabotage attacks targeting members of the Iran-allied Hezbollah group in Lebanon that saw pagers and walkie-talkies explode, killing at least 39 people.

Nearly 3,000 others were wounded in the attack, which Iran and Hezbollah blamed on Israel.


01:23 PM BST

Hezbollah says launched drone attack on base in north Israel’s Haifa

Hezbollah said it launched a drone attack Saturday on a military base in north Israel’s Haifa, hours after claiming an attack on another base south of the city.

Hezbollah fighters at 8:00am launched “an air attack with a group of explosives-laden drones on an air defence base” in Haifa, a statement from the Iran-backed group said.


12:58 PM BST

US forces strike Islamic State group in Syria

US forces have conducted air strikes against multiple Islamic State group sites in Syria, the military said Saturday, as ally Israel battles other militants in Gaza and Lebanon.

US forces “conducted a series of airstrikes against multiple known ISIS camps in Syria in the early morning of Oct 11,” the US Central Command said.

“The strikes will disrupt the ability of ISIS to plan, organise, and conduct attacks against the United States, its allies and partners, and civilians throughout the region and beyond.”

The US military has around 900 troops in Syria as part of the international coalition against the Islamic State group.

The coalition was established in 2014 to help combat the armed group, which had taken over vast swaths of Iraq and Syria.

Anti-IS coalition forces have been targeted dozens of times with drones and rocket fire in both Iraq and Syria, as violence related to the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza since last year has drawn in militants across the Middle East.


12:48 PM BST

Palestinians flee areas in northern Gaza following Israeli evacuation order


12:35 PM BST

Israeli strikes kill 19 people in Gaza, medics say, as tanks push deeper north

Israeli military strikes on Gaza overnight killed at least 19 Palestinians, medics said on Saturday, while forces continued to push deeper into the Jabalia area, where international relief agencies say thousands of people are trapped.

Residents said Israeli forces continued to pound Jabalia, which is in the north of the enclave and is the largest of the enclave’s historic refugee camps, from the air and ground.

There has been no fresh Israeli comment but the military said in past days that forces operating in Jabalia and nearby areas killed dozens of militants, located weapons and dismantled military infrastructure.

The operation in this area began a week ago and the military said then it aimed to fight against Hamas militants waging attacks and to prevent Hamas from regrouping.

Palestinian health officials put the number of people killed in Jabalia over the past week at around 150.


12:25 PM BST

More on Israel’s evacuation orders in southern Lebanon

The order, communicated via a military statement, mentions villages in southern Lebanon that have been recent targets of Israeli attacks, many of which are already almost empty.

The Israeli military stated that evacuations were necessary for the safety of residents due to increased Hezbollah activities, claiming the group is using sites to conceal weapons and launch attacks on Israel. Hezbollah denies concealing its weapons among civilians.

The conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, which erupted one year ago when the Iranian-backed group began launching rockets at northern Israel in support of Hamas at the start of the


12:09 PM BST

Irish PM demands Israel ‘stop firing’ at UN peacekeepers

Simon Harris, the Irish prime minister, has urged Israel to heed “the concerns of the international community” and “stop firing on UN peacekeepers”.

Israel said its forces fired at a threat near a United Nations position in Lebanon Friday, acknowledging that a “hit” was responsible for wounding two Blue Helmets.

The two Sri Lankan peacekeepers were injured at Unifil’s main base in Naqura, southern Lebanon, according to the mission. It followed two Indonesian soldiers suffering injuries when tank fire hit a watchtower the previous day.

The recent incidents that have sparked a fierce diplomatic backlash. Keir Starmer said he was “appalled” at reports Israel deliberately fired on the peacekeepers, while US president Joe Biden said he was asking Israel not to hit UN peacekeepers. The leaders of France, Italy and Spain said in a joint statement the attacks were “unjustifiable” and a “serious violation of the obligations of Israel” under humanitarian international law.

“Israel must stop firing on UN peacekeepers serving with Unifil in Lebanon,” Ireland’s leader said in a statement. “Israel must listen to the voice and the concerns of the international community.”


11:59 AM BST

Iran’s parliament speaker denounces “Israel’s crimes”

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran’s parliament speaker, has denounced what he called Israel’s “crimes” as he visited the site of the deadliest Israeli strike on central Beirut in recent weeks.

“International organisations and the UN Security Council have the capability (to stop Israel) but they are unfortunately keeping silent,” he said.

Earlier Saturday, Mr Ghalibaf met Lebanese prime minister Najib Mikati, who told him his government’s priority was “to work towards a ceasefire”, Lebanon’s official National News Agency said.


11:42 AM BST

In pictures: Iran’s parliament speaker visits site of Israeli airstrike in Beirut

Iran's parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf after visiting the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted Beirut's Basta neighbourhood
Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf after visiting the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted Beirut’s Basta neighbourhood - AFP via Getty Images
At least 22 people were killed in the airstrikes, the Lebanese health ministry said, with a security source saying a Hezbollah figure was the target
At least 22 people were killed in the airstrikes, the Lebanese health ministry said, with a security source saying a Hezbollah figure was the target - IBRAHIM AMRO/AFP via Getty Images

11:28 AM BST

Russia, Syria, Iran should take measures after Israel’s strike on Damascus, Erdogan says

Russia, Syria and Iran should take more effective measures to protect Syria’s territorial integrity, Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan said, when asked about Israel’s recent strike on Damascus.

“We will defend an urgent and permanent peace in Syria...Israel is the most concrete threat to regional and global peace,” Mr Erdogan said in an interview with Turkish media.

“It is essential that Russia, Iran and Syria take more effective measures against this situation, which poses the greatest threat to Syria’s territorial integrity,”he added.

The strike, which targeted a residential building in the Mezzah suburb west of the Syrian capital Damascus, killed seven people and injured 11 others, according to state media.


11:01 AM BST

Iran parliament speaker visits site of deadliest Israeli strike in central Beirut

Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has visited the site of the deadliest Israeli strike on central Beirut in recent weeks, accompanied by two Hezbollah lawmakers, an AFP photographer said.

A source close to Hezbollah has said that the air raid on Thursday night in the densely populated Basta area, which killed at least 22 people, had targeted the Iran-backed group’s security chief Wafiq Safa, but his fate remains unknown.


10:48 AM BST

Donald Trump leads Kamala Harris on handling of Israel, WSJ poll shows

Former Republican president Donald Trump has an edge over Democratic vice president Kamala Harris on who would better navigate the country through the Ukraine and Middle East wars, a Wall Street Journal opinion poll of seven battleground states showed.

In overall support, the poll published on Friday showed Ms Harris and Mr Trump tied across the seven states that could decide the November presidential election.

The poll showed Ms Harris with marginal two percentage point leads in Arizona, Georgia and Michigan, Mr Trump up six points in Nevada and one in Pennsylvania, and the pair tied in North Carolina and Wisconsin.


10:14 AM BST

Israel orders Lebanese to evacuate north of Awali river

The Israeli military has ordered residents of 22 southern Lebanese villages to evacuate to areas north of the Awali River, according to a statement released on Saturday


10:12 AM BST

ICYMI: Israel launches deadliest attack on Beirut since start of war


10:01 AM BST

Hezbollah launches salvo of missiles south of Haifa

Hezbollah says it launched a salvo of missiles at an Israeli military base south of the city of Haifa, as Israelis marked the Yom Kippur holiday.

Hezbollah fighters struck a base “south of the city of Haifa, targeting the explosives factory there with a salvo of... missiles”, the group said in a statement.


09:51 AM BST

Iran ‘extremely nervous’ about Israel’s anticipated retaliation

Iran’s government is “extremely nervous” and has been engaging in urgent diplomatic efforts with Middle Eastern countries to see whether they can reduce the scale of Israel’s response to its missile attack earlier this month, sources familiar with the matter told CNN.

CNN reported that Iran’s anxiety stems from uncertainty about whether the US can convince Israel not to strike Iranian nuclear sites and oil facilities, and the fact that its most important proxy militia in the region, Hezbollah, has been significantly weakened in recent weeks.


09:46 AM BST

Anticipated retaliation against Iran

After the Yom Kippur holiday, attention is likely to turn again to the expected retaliation against Iran, which launched around 200 missiles at Israel on October 1.

Yoav Gallant, the Israeli defence minister, vowed this week that his country’s response would be “deadly, precise and surprising”.

The US administration has pushed for a “proportionate” response that would not tip the region into a wider war, with Joe Biden, the president, urging Israel to avoid striking Iranian nuclear facilities or energy infrastructure.


09:41 AM BST

Israel army warns south Lebanon residents ‘not to return to homes’

The Israeli military has warned residents of south Lebanon “not to return” to their homes as troops continued fighting Hezbollah militants in the area.

Israeli forces continue to “target Hezbollah posts in or near your villages”, military spokesman Avichay Adraee said on social media. “For your own protection, do not return to your homes until further notice. Do not go south; anyone who goes south may put his life at risk.”


09:38 AM BST

In pictures

An Israeli airstrike that targeted the southern Lebanese village of Khiam on October 12
An Israeli airstrike that targeted the southern Lebanese village of Khiam on October 12 - RABIH DAHER/AFP via Getty Images
The aftermath of Israeli airstrikes in a crowded central district in Beirut
The aftermath of Israeli airstrikes in a crowded central district in Beirut - Scott Peterson/Getty Images
A protest against Israeli attacks on Gaza and Lebanon in Baghdad
A protest against Israeli attacks on Gaza and Lebanon in Baghdad - Murtadha Al-Sudani/Anadolu via Getty Images

09:22 AM BST

Gaza death toll rises to 42,175

At least 42,175 Palestinians have been killed and 98,336 others injured in Israel’s military offensive on Gaza since Oct 7, 2023, Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry said on Saturday.

The toll includes 49 deaths in the previous 24 hours, according to the ministry.


09:20 AM BST

Blinken says US wants Lebanon solution, not ‘broader conflict’

Antony Blinken, the US secretary of state, voiced hope Friday for a diplomatic solution in Lebanon and preventing a broader conflict.

Mr Blinken said that Israel, which has been carrying out deadly strikes on Lebanon, “has a right to defend itself” against Hezbollah, but that he was alarmed by the worsening humanitarian situation.

“We continue to engage intensely to prevent broader conflict in the region,” Mr Blinken said. “We all have a strong interest in trying to help create an environment in which people can go back to their homes, their safety and security, kids can go back to school.”

Mr Blinken speaking during a news conference on Friday
Mr Blinken speaking during a news conference on Friday - AP Photo/Dita Alangkara

“So Israel has a clear and very legitimate interest in doing that. The people of Lebanon want the same thing. We believe that the best way to get there is through a diplomatic understanding, one that we’ve been working on for some time, and one that we focus on right now,” he added.

Later in the day Blinken spoke by phone with Lebanese prime ,inister Najib Mikati and parliament speaker Nabih Berri.

He told reporters that “Lebanon cannot allow Iran or Hezbollah to stand in the way of Lebanon’s security and stability”.


09:17 AM BST

Nicaragua breaks diplomatic relations with Israel

A man holds Palestinian and Sandinista flags during the inauguration of Gaza street, in support to the Palestinian people, in Nicaragua's Managua in January
A man holds Palestinian and Sandinista flags during the inauguration of Gaza street, in support to the Palestinian people, in Nicaragua’s Managua in January - OSWALDO RIVAS/AFP via Getty Images

Nicaragua is breaking off diplomatic relations with Israel, the Central American nation said on Friday, calling the Israeli government “fascist” and “genocidal.”

Nicaragua’s government said the break in relations was due to Israel’s attacks on Palestinian territories.

The nation’s congress had, earlier in the day, passed a resolution requesting Nicaragua take action to coincide with the one-year anniversary of the Gaza war.

The conflict, the Nicaraguan government said, now also “extends against Lebanon and gravely threatens Syria, Yemen and Iran.”

Iran is an ally of Nicaraguan president Daniel Ortega’s administration. Nicaragua has become increasingly isolated in recent years after Mr Ortega cracked down on anti-government protests in 2018, which rights groups say left around 300 dead.


09:14 AM BST

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