Israel Notes Yom Kippur Amid Controversy About Strikes Against Lebanon

Israel was under heavy worldwide condemnation over its military operations in Lebanon as it marked Yom Kippur, the holiest day on the Jewish calendar, on October 11, 2024. The second such event in two days: the Israeli military admitted an attack on a United Nations peacekeeping post in Lebanon had injured two Sri Lankan peacekeepers. Although Israel's military claimed it reacted to a "immediate threat" close to the UNIFIL base, foreign officials, including UN chief Antonio Guterres, denounced the action as against international law.

There have been major losses from the continuous conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. Lebanese health ministry estimates that since combat got more intense, over 1,200 people have passed away in the country. Israel has started airstrikes aiming at Hezbollah sites in southern Lebanon while Hezbollah has fired missiles into northern Israel. Calls from European leaders and Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati as well as diplomatic attempts at a truce have thus so far failed.

Health officials in the Hamas-run area indicate that the situation in Gaza is still terrible after Israel's military operation has claimed over 42,000 lives, mostly among civilians. Calls for peace notwithstanding, violence still goes on in Gaza and Lebanon, with Israeli aircraft striking heavily inhabited areas, hence raising tensions during the serious Yom Kippur holiday.