Reuters: World

Israel steps up Gaza bombing on war's first anniversary, civilians desperate for return to calm Israel stepped up its air and ground offensive in Gaza with more attacks on Hamas militants and command posts on Monday, the first anniversary of a war that has destroyed much of the territory and shattered the lives of its people. For its part, Hamas said it struck Israel's commercial capital Tel Aviv with a missile salvo, setting off sirens in central Israel. Two people were lightly injured, according to the Israeli ambulance service. read more

After a year of war, Gazans wonder how to deal with tonnes of rubble In the ruins of his two-storey home, 11-year-old Mohammed gathers chunks of the fallen roof into a broken pail and pounds them into gravel which his father will use to make gravestones for victims of the Gaza war. "We get the rubble not to build houses, no, but for tombstones and graves - from one misery to another," his father, former construction worker Jihad Shamali, 42, says as he cuts through metal salvaged from their home in the southern city of Khan Younis, destroyed during an Israeli raid in April. The work is hard, and at times grim. In March, the family built a tomb for one of Shamali's sons, Ismail, killed while running household errands. read more

Nasrallah's possible successor out of contact since Friday, Lebanese source says The potential successor to slain Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has been out of contact since Friday, a Lebanese security source said on Saturday, after an Israeli airstrike that is reported to have targeted him. In its campaign against the Iran-backed Lebanese group, Israel carried out a large strike on Beirut's southern suburbs late on Thursday that Axios cited three Israeli officials as saying targeted Hashem Safieddine in an underground bunker. read more

Israeli strike hits north Lebanon as raids pummel Beirut suburbs An Israeli strike hit Lebanon's northern city of Tripoli for the first time early on Saturday, a Lebanese security source said, after more bombardment hit Beirut's suburbs and Israeli troops sought to make new ground incursions into southern Lebanon. The source told Reuters a Hamas official, his wife and two children were killed in the strike on a Palestinian refugee camp in Tripoli. Hamas-affiliated media said the strike killed a leader of the group's armed wing. read more

Hezbollah says it is ready for any Israeli land invasion in Lebanon Hezbollah fighters are primed to confront any Israeli ground invasion of Lebanon, the group's, opens new tab deputy leader Naim Qassem said on Monday in his first public speech since Israeli airstrikes killed its veteran chief Hassan Nasrallah last week. Israel will not achieve its goals, he said. "We will face any possibility and we are ready if the Israelis decide to enter by land and the resistance forces are ready for a ground engagement," he said in an address from an undisclosed location. read more

Israel kills Hezbollah commander in airstrike on Beirut, security sources say An Israeli airstrike on the southern suburbs of Beirut on Tuesday killed a Hezbollah commander who was a leading figure in its rocket division, two security sources in Lebanon said, as fears of a full-fledged war in the Middle East mounted. The sources identified the commander who was killed as Ibrahim Qubaisi. The attack, in which six people were killed, dealt another blow to the Iran-backed group which has faced a series of setbacks at the hands of Israel over the past week. read more

Lebanon says Israeli airstrikes kill at least 492, residents flee from south Israel's military said it launched airstrikes against Hezbollah sites in Lebanon on Monday, which Lebanese authorities said had killed 492 people and sent tens of thousands fleeing for safety in the country's deadliest day in decades. After some of the heaviest cross-border exchanges of fire since hostilities flared in October, Israel warned people in Lebanon to evacuate areas where it said the armed movement was storing weapons. read more

Striking Indian doctors set to resume essential services Striking junior doctors in India's West Bengal state agreed to resume essential services, in a partial resumption of medical facilities, but they will continue their strike over the rape and murder of a colleague over a month ago. The rape and murder of the 31-year-old female doctor in West Bengal in August set off a wave of protests by doctors demanding greater workplace safety for women and justice for their slain colleague, prompting India's Supreme Court to create a hospital safety task force. read more

Suspect in Trump assassination attempt may have lain in wait for 12 hours A man suspected of hiding for nearly 12 hours in an apparent attempt to assassinate Donald Trump at his Florida golf course was charged with two gun-related crimes on Monday, a day after authorities say he was spotted in the bushes with a rifle as the former U.S. president played nearby. The suspect never had the Republican presidential candidate for the Nov. 5 election in his line of sight and did not fire any shots. But the incident raised questions about how an armed man was able to get so close to Trump, just two months after another gunman grazed his ear with a bullet during a July 13 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. read more

Exclusive: Russia produces kamikaze drone with Chinese engine Russia started producing a new long-range attack drone called the Garpiya-A1 last year using Chinese engines and parts, which it has deployed in the war in Ukraine, according to two sources from a European intelligence agency and documents seen by Reuters. The intelligence – which included a production contract for the new drone, company correspondence on the manufacturing process and financial documents - indicated that IEMZ Kupol, a subsidiary of Russian state-owned weapons maker Almaz-Antey, produced more than 2,500 Garpiyas from July 2023 to July 2024. The existence of the new Russian drone incorporating Chinese technology has not been previously reported. IEMZ Kupol and Almaz-Antey did not respond to requests for comment. read more

Floods inundate north Vietnam as Typhoon Yagi death toll climbs Severe floods are expected to inundate Vietnam's north, including the capital Hanoi, government officials said, as the aftermath of typhoon Yagi, the most powerful storm to hit Asia so far this year, continues to extract a deadly toll. Landslides and floods triggered by the typhoon have killed at least 65 people and 39 others are missing in the north, the disaster management agency said on Tuesday in its latest update on the situation. read more

Turkey's Erdogan calls for Islamic alliance against Israel Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday Islamic countries should form an alliance against what he called "the growing threat of expansionism" from Israel. He made the comment after describing what Palestinian and Turkish officials said was the killing by Israeli troops of a Turkish-American woman taking part in a protest on Friday against settlement expansion in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. "The only step that will stop Israeli arrogance, Israeli banditry, and Israeli state terrorism is the alliance of Islamic countries," Erdogan said at an Islamic schools' association event near Istanbul. read more