Khamenei warns Israel, US of ‘crushing response’ for actions against Iran
Jerusalem, Nov 2: An attack on a central Israeli town early Saturday injured 11 people as Iran's Supreme Leader vowed a punishing response to Israel's attack last week.
The predawn strike on Tira, which followed air raid sirens across central Israel, was one of several barrages fired from Lebanon early in the day. Many of the projectiles were intercepted by Israeli air defences, while others landed in unpopulated areas.
The Magen David Adom emergency service said 11 people were hurt by shrapnel and glass shards in a direct strike on a building in Tira, a predominantly Israeli Arab town. Three were in moderate condition, while the others suffered milder injuries.
Footage showed significant damage to the roof and top floor of the three-storey building and cars below.
Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah group said on Saturday that it had used missiles and explosive drones to target military and intelligence facilities in northern and central Israel. It claimed responsibility for firing missiles toward the Israeli military's Unit 8200 base in Glilot on the edge of Tel Aviv and for firing rockets toward military facilities in Zvulun. Hezbollah also said it had targeted central Israel's Palmachim Air Base with explosive drones, saying they “scored precise hits on targets."
Israel's military did not confirm whether any of the three Hezbollah targets had been hit and said it had no comment on the group's claims.
Hezbollah said the Saturday dawn missile attack directed at Glilot was in retaliation for the “massacres” that are being committed by Israel. It was likely that the claim was linked to the strike on Tira, which is about 20 kilometres away from Glilot.
Tamar Abdel Hai, a resident of Tira, said that the attack was frightening. “I call upon all the leaders in the Arab world and the leaders in Israel and to everyone who can help to end this war. It's enough,” he said.
Hezbollah also said that its fighters have fired salvos of rockets into northern Israeli towns including Dalton, Yesud HaMa'ala and Bar Yohai.
Israeli media showed images of damage reportedly caused by a drone that hit a factory north of Nahariya. The army said several drones crossed from Lebanon into Israel, one was intercepted but “fallen targets were identified in the area.”
Iran threatens more attacks
The early Saturday attacks may be only a precursor to a more severe strike against Israel.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader, on Saturday threatened Israel and the US with a punishing response over attacks on Iran and its allies following Israel's Oct. 26 airstrikes that targeted Iran's military bases and other locations.
“The enemies, whether the Zionist regime or the United States of America, will definitely receive a crushing response to what they are doing to Iran and the Iranian nation and to the resistance front,” Khamenei said in video released by Iranian state media.
A further attack by Iran, which has already launched two direct attacks against Israel this year, could push the wider Middle East closer to a broader conflict. Israel is already battling the Iran-backed group Hamas in the Gaza Strip and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
The fight against Hezbollah has weakened the group but has also taken a heavy toll on southern Lebanon and other parts of the country.
On Friday, Israel launched dozens of intense airstrikes across Lebanon's northeastern farming villages, killing at least 52 people and wounding scores more, the Lebanese Health Ministry reported.
Since the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah erupted in 2023, more than 2,897 people have been killed and 13,150 wounded in Lebanon, according to a Health Ministry update early Friday. United Nations agencies estimate that Israel's ground invasion and bombardment of Lebanon has displaced 1.4 million people.
Residents of Israel's northern communities near Lebanon, roughly 60,000 people, have also been displaced for more than a year.
Israeli strikes in Gaza kill at least 42 people in the last 24 hours
Israel has also stepped up its offensive against Hamas' remaining fighters in Gaza, raising concerns about humanitarian conditions for civilians still there.
A series of Israeli strikes on Nuseirat, a refugee camp in central Gaza, killed at least 42 people, more than a half of them women and children, in the last 24 hours, Dr. Marwan Abu Naser, director of Al-Awda Hospital that received the casualties, told The Associated Press. Another 150 were wounded, he said.
The World Health Organization began a scaled-down polio vaccination campaign on Saturday, limiting efforts to offer at-risk children in Gaza City second doses after providing first doses in multiple parts of northern Gaza, which has seen intense Israeli bombardment.
The second round was initially set to start October 23 but was postponed due to lack of access amid intense Israeli bombing, mass evacuation orders and a lack of assurance about humanitarian pauses.
Israel's war in Gaza has killed more than 43,000 Palestinians since October 7, 2023, when Hamas group killed roughly 1,200 people in Israel and took some 250 hostages back to Gaza. Health officials inside Hamas-run Gaza do not distinguish between civilians and combatants, but say more than half of the dead in the enclave are women and children.
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Kerala lynching: CM assures justice, CPI (M) targets RSS-BJP over incident
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): The Kerala government on Monday assured stringent action in the mob lynching of a Chattisgarh native mistaken to be a thief, and promised justice to the family, even as the ruling CPI(M) targeted the RSS over the assault, a charge denied by the BJP.
Ramnarayan (31), was allegedly beaten to death on Wednesday after being accused of involvement in theft at Kizhakeattappallam near Walayar in Palakkad district.
With the issue sending shock waves across the state, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday described the incident as "deeply disturbing".
Assuring justice to his family, who have arrived in the state, Vijayan said such acts tarnish the reputation of a progressive society like Kerala and are completely unacceptable.
State minister M B Rajesh claimed racial slurs were made at the victim and that the attackers were RSS workers. Ruling CPI (M) state secretary M V Govindan also alleged that RSS-BJP workers were behind the crime.
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In a statement issued by the CM's office, Vijayan said strict action would be taken against those responsible for the crime.
A special investigation team of the district police is probing the incident, he said, adding that instructions have been issued to thoroughly examine the details of the case and initiate all necessary legal proceedings.
The government will also review the matter and ensure appropriate compensation to the victim's family, Vijayan added.
He called for collective vigilance to prevent the recurrence of such incidents in the future.
His remarks came a day after opposition Congress and the victim's family demanded compensation and an investigation under stringent laws, including the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
The brother of deceased man told reporters on Sunday that the family would not accept the body until their demands, including compensation of Rs 25 lakh, are met.
Kerala ministers K Rajan and Rajesh strongly condemned the incident and said it was not just a mob lynching case but racial abuse was involved in it.
The ministers said the accused had attacked the deceased man, calling him a "Bangladeshi" and beat him to death.
"The government will ensure a foolproof probe into the incident, and no one involved in the crime will be spared," Revenue Minister Rajan told reporters in Thrissur.
He said an amount not less than Rs 10 lakh would be granted from the Chief Minister's Distress Relief Fund (CMDRF) to the deceased man's family and a cabinet meeting would take a decision in this regard.
LSGD Minister Rajesh also said Ramnarayan was branded as a Bangladeshi by the attackers.
While talking to reporters in Palakkad, he alleged that those who brutally assaulted and killed Ramnarayan were RSS workers.
The Chhattisgarh native, who reached Kerala in search of a job, became a victim of the "divisive politics" of Sangh Parivar, Rajesh further alleged.
"Branding a person as Bangladeshi came from racial politics. Ramnarayan was a victim of the racial poison spread by the Sangh Parivar in the country," he charged.
Rajesh also accused a section of the media of hiding the involvement of the RSS in the assault.
Stepping up the attack against the right-wing groups, CPI (M) state secretary M V Govindan alleged that RSS-BJP workers were the ones behind the crime.
"Those involved in the incident were accused in various criminal cases of RSS. All of them were identified. Such cruelties should not be allowed to repeat in the state," he said.
Expressing strong protest, the senior leader further said a society which believes in democratic values and secular principles cannot accept such crimes.
Senior BJP leader Kummanam Rajasekharan strongly rejected the charges against the saffron party and the RSS.
"Actually, why is politics mixed in such crimes. When a heinous crime like mob lynching happens, should it not be treated as an anti-social act," he told reporters here.
Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly, V D Satheesan urged the government to take urgent steps to provide financial assistance to the family of Ramnarayan.
Meanwhile, Palakkad Superintendent of Police Ajit Kumar said at present, the case was registered under sections of murder, and after a detailed probe, more would be added.
After verifying the caste certificate of the deceased man, SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act would also be invoked, he told reporters in Palakkad.
A 10-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been formed under the DSP (district crime branch) to probe the mob lynching incident. The SIT will be under the direction and supervision of the Pakakkad SP, he added.
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When reporters asked about the political background of the accused persons, the officer said it was being verified.
He said that the arrested persons were already facing police cases.
Five people have been arrested so far for allegedly beating Ramnarayan to death on suspicion of theft.
The injured man was rushed to the Palakkad District Government Hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries.
