Israeli Strikes on Lebanon Threaten US-Iran Truce

The United Nations secretary-general, António Guterres, warned that deadly Israeli strikes on Lebanon posed a grave risk to the fragile two-week ceasefire agreed upon by the United States and Iran. The Lebanese health ministry reported 182 people killed and 890 wounded by Israeli strikes on April 8, with Beirut experiencing its most violent bombardment since the war between Israel and Hezbollah began. Lebanon was drawn into the conflict after Hezbollah targeted Israel in retaliation for the US-Israel war against Iran. While the United States and Iran agreed to a truce, Israel insisted Lebanon was not part of it. Hezbollah responded by firing rockets towards Israel, and Iran's parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, appeared to threaten the ceasefire. The United Nations rights chief, Volker Türk, and the International Committee of the Red Cross condemned the horrific scale of killing and destruction, and French President Emmanuel Macron called for Lebanon's inclusion in the ceasefire.