Israel has said that its fighter jets and helicopter gunships have attacked targets in Lebanon.
The footage shows a number of buildings being destroyed by Israeli ordnance in large explosions.
The images were obtained from the Israel Defence Forces on the evening of Thursday, 7th December, along with a statement saying: “Fighter jets and helicopter gunships attacked a series of terrorist targets of the Hezbollah terrorist organisation in Lebanese territory.
“Among the targets that were attacked, a position from which launches were made into the country, military sites where the organisation’s terrorists operated and an observation post.”
We have not been able to independently verify the claims or the footage.
The Israel-Hamas war is now entering its 62nd day, after the deadliest attack on Israel by Hamas on 7th October left 1,200 Israelis dead.
At least 17,177 Palestinians have been killed after Israel retaliated with airstrikes on Gaza and a ground invasion.
The United Nations Security Council is meeting today, Friday, 8th December, to vote on a ceasefire in Gaza.
The move comes after UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres invoked the UN charter’s Article 99, which stipulates that the Secretary-General may bring to the attention of the Council “any matter which in his opinion may threaten the maintenance of international peace and security.”
It is the first time that Article 99 has been invoked in decades.
Guterres said in a letter: “Amid constant bombardment by the Israel Defense Forces, and without shelter or the essentials to survive, I expect public order to completely break down soon due to the desperate conditions, rendering even limited humanitarian assistance impossible.”
The United Arab Emirates then prepared a draft resolution that will be put to a vote today, according to the delegation from Ecuador, which is chairing the Council this month and decides on scheduling.
The text will reportedly call for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the Palestinian enclave, the protection of civilians, the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages by Hamas and humanitarian access to the Gaza Strip.
The expected outcome of the vote is unclear, with four earlier drafts presented to the council since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war being rejected by the Security Council.
The United States, which is Israel’s most powerful ally, vetoed a previous draft resolution and rejects the idea of a ceasefire, saying that the new resolution from the Council is not “useful”.
And Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said on Wednesday that Guterres running the UN was “a danger to world peace” after the Secretary-General invoked Article 99.
