Farrukh Abadi
Israeli forces have withdrawn from the western sector of south Lebanon on Monday (01/06). This is the first major withdrawal of Israeli forces from Lebanon as the January 26 expiration of the Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire looms. Hezbollah has promised retaliation if Israel does not fully withdraw from the country, as stipulated by the ceasefire, with Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem stating “Our patience may run out before or after the 60 days. When we decide to do something, you will see it directly.” Lebanon has already reported over 800 violations by Israel of the ceasefire agreement, as the latter continues to carry out ground and air attacks against Lebanon.
Across the West Bank, Gaza, and within Israel itself, Palestinian resistance forces continue their attacks as part of the Al-Aqsa Flood counteroffensive.
On Monday, Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank killed and injured at least 11 Israelis in an illegal settlement in spite of the latest concentrated attacks by Israel and the collaborationist Palestinian Authority against the people of the West Bank. Among the dead is Yaakov Finkelstein, identified by Palestinians as a brutal interrogator responsible for torturing Palestinian children.
The attack on the Israelis received praise from resistance factions, with Hamas’s military spokesman Abu Obeida stating: “The enemy must know that if it continues its aggression against Gaza and the West Bank, it will pay the price with the blood of its soldiers and settlers.” Israeli settlers have regularly carried out pogroms and violently displaced Palestinians with the backing of Israeli forces, which has ramped up over the last 15 months.
Over the last weekend, Al Jazeera reports Israeli forces bombed Gaza over 100 times. On Monday, Israel bombed a school in the central Gaza Strip, injuring 40 Palestinians, while Palestinian children and infants continue to die from malnourishment and hypothermia imposed by the US-Zionist genocidal war. This comes as US President Joe Biden has authorized an additional $8 billion in military supplies for Israel, including bombs and missiles.
Palestinian resistance forces in Gaza launched rockets at the Israeli Sderot settlement from areas the IDF claim they control. Resistance forces have liquidated several Israeli soldiers and tanks over the past few days in ambushes, with Abu Obeida releasing a statement challenging the IDF to reveal its true casualty figures, which the latter regularly hides.
The Yemeni Armed Forces of Ansarallah continue their missile and drone strikes on Israeli military and industrial targets in support of the Palestinian national struggle. Additionally, Ansarallah announced their missile and drone forces launched a coordinated attack against the US aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman as it was preparing to attack Yemen, forcing it to withdraw and thwarting the attack.
Image: A funeral for an Israeli soldier killed by resistance forces. Credit: Al Mayadeen.
