The EU’s chief diplomat announces consultations on Israel. The FDP General Secretary calls for Israel to be treated like a NATO partner. All developments in the news blog.
5:05 a.m.: Israel signals its willingness to engage in dialogue with the USA, but at the same time underlines its autonomy in decision-making issues. Israel will listen to the US, but will ultimately make its own decisions based on national interests, says Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office. The statement refers to an article in the Washington Post newspaper that said Netanyahu told President Joe Biden’s administration that Israel would target military targets in the event of an attack on Iran, but not nuclear or oil facilities.
4:58 a.m.: The US presidential office warns Iran of “serious consequences” if it attacks former President Donald Trump or other US citizens. “We view this as a national and homeland security matter of the highest priority and strongly condemn Iran for these bold threats,” said White House National Security Council spokesman Sean Savett.
The USA has been monitoring Iranian threats against then-President Donald Trump very closely for years. Iran must face serious consequences if it attacks US citizens, including current and former government members.
11:51 p.m.: According to a media report, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has promised the USA that he would attack military targets rather than oil or nuclear facilities in Iran. This indicates a limited counterattack in order to avoid a large-scale war with Israel’s arch-enemy, reports the Washington Post, citing two people familiar with the matter from US government circles.
11:29 p.m.: According to the army, Israeli ground troops have discovered an underground Hezbollah compound in southern Lebanon. This is said to have served as a command center for the Lebanese militia’s elite Radwan force, where weapons, ammunition and motorcycles were available, the military said. The army released a video showing bedrooms, a kitchen and sanitary facilities in the complex.
According to the army, the underground complex was designed so that a Radwan force would arrive there, equip themselves and then enter Israeli territory on foot or on motorcycles. According to the military, the site is located under a civilian area in southern Lebanon. The Israeli information could not be independently verified.
When the troops discovered the underground area, they came across a Radwan fighter who had holed up there, according to an army statement. They killed him.
11:11 p.m.: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejects allegations that his country’s military deliberately attacked UN peacekeepers (Unifil) in Lebanon. This is “absolutely wrong”. Rather, Israel’s military is doing its utmost to prevent Unifil personnel from being harmed while Israel is hitting Hezbollah fighters, Netanyahu says. “But the best way to ensure the safety of Unifil personnel is for Unifil to comply with Israel’s request and temporarily withdraw from the danger zone.”
8:06 p.m.: EU chief diplomat Josep Borrell wants to hold a debate about possible violations of international humanitarian law by Israel at the next meeting of the foreign ministers of the member states. As the Spaniard’s employees explained in the evening in Luxembourg, if there is a unanimous assessment to the detriment of Israel, consequences could then be brought about. Spain and Ireland had already suggested several months ago that a partnership agreement between the EU and Israel should be examined. This involves, among other things, economic cooperation in areas such as industry, energy, transport and tourism.
According to Borrell’s earlier statements, the EU Commission could propose suspending the agreement if Israel no longer adheres to basic principles. Critics of Israel point out that the agreement also states that relations between the contracting parties are based not only on the principles of democracy, but also on respect for human rights.
