Lebanon’s PM and Egypt’s FM head to UN General Assembly in New York

Lebanon’s prime minister, Nawaf Salam, has made the journey to New York City for the UN General Assembly (UNGA) session next week.

Egypt’s Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty, in a post on X, said he has, too.

Bahrain’s foreign minister, Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani, is also already in New York, where he has been holding meetings on the sidelines of the UNGA.

Qatar has also confirmed high-level participation.

The main UNGA debate begins on September 22 and runs til September 28. There will be 73 heads of state, 45 heads of government and 11 vice presidents, according to figures released by the United Nations on Friday.

Israeli forces carry out new demolitions in southern Lebanon

Israeli forces have carried out a new series of demolitions in southern Lebanon, including in al-Mansouri and Khiam, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA).

NNA said several powerful explosions were heard in al-Mansouri, south of Tyre, while Israeli forces were also operating on the outskirts of Sarbin in Bint Jbeil district. It separately reported a major demolition in Khiam.

The latest blasts come amid an ongoing Israeli campaign of demolitions across southern Lebanon, where homes and other infrastructure have been destroyed despite a US-brokered ceasefire framework. Al-Mansouri has been repeatedly targeted in recent weeks.

IMF says war taking heavy toll on Lebanon’s economy

The International Monetary Fund says Israel’s war on Lebanon and wider regional tensions have taken a “heavy toll” on the country’s economy and living conditions.

Following a four-day mission to Beirut, the IMF said inflation remains in double digits and Lebanon’s current account deficit has widened, driven mainly by rising energy costs.

It also pointed to extensive damage to infrastructure and housing, large-scale internal displacement and a significant deterioration in living standards among displaced people.

Despite the impact of the conflict, the IMF said Lebanese authorities had maintained a measure of macroeconomic stability through cautious fiscal and monetary policies.

The IMF said Lebanon would need a credible medium-term fiscal framework to restore debt sustainability while creating room for spending on reconstruction, support for displaced people and social protection.

Israeli forces raid southern Lebanon’s Nabatieh

Israeli military forces have carried out raids on the city of Nabatieh and the town of Upper Nabatieh in southern Lebanon.

Israel launches third air strike on southern Lebanese town of Nabatieh al-Fawqa

Israeli forces have carried out another air attack on Nabatieh al-Fawqa.

Israeli raids on southern Lebanon hit paramedics

Two back-to-back Israeli air raids hit Lebanon’s southern city of Nabatieh, while a third hit an ambulance team responding to the attacks.

This about a double-tap in a war crime making it a double war crime.

Blast in southern Lebanon injures two Israeli soldiers

The Israeli military says two of its soldiers were “lightly injured” after an engineering vehicle hit an explosive device in southern Lebanon.

The Israeli army said the soldiers were evacuated for treatment and their families were informed.

It blamed Hezbollah for the explosion and said it later struck several sites in southern Lebanon in response.

UN peacekeeping chief in Lebanon says a smooth transition is critical before pull-out

The head of the United Nations peacekeeping force in Lebanon says it is critical to ensure other UN agencies and Lebanese troops can assume the tasks carried out by the force before it begins withdrawing at the end of this year.

“There are other United Nations entities here in the south [of Lebanon], and so what is very important for us [is] to conduct a very smooth transition to different entities, or for the future of a new mission,” Major General Diodato Abagnara said in an interview with the Reuters news agency.

He said UNIFIL was already working with the UN’s country team to ensure humanitarian assistance in Israeli-occupied areas and information sharing with the Lebanese army about “sensitive areas [and] how they can manage this situation”.

Abagnara spoke to Reuters overlooking the town of Mansouri, where Israeli forces have been demolishing homes since ordering residents to leave in June, despite a ceasefire. Reuters reporters could see excavators in the town knocking down trees and multi-storey homes.

Abagnara described the demolitions as “another violation” of UN Security Council resolutions on Lebanon.

Israeli air strike destroys house between Hadatha and Haris in south Lebanon

Israeli warplanes carried out a heavy raid between Hadatha and Haris in southern Lebanon, targeting a house and completely destroying it, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency.

The strike coincided with Israeli artillery shelling targeting the outskirts of Hadatha.

Israeli air strike hits outskirts of Sarbin in south Lebanon

Israeli warplanes carried out an air strike this afternoon on the outskirts of the town of Sarbin, near Haris in the Bint Jbeil district, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency.

Israeli air strikes hit Nabatieh al-Fawqa and Kfar Tebnit in southern Lebanon

Israeli warplanes have carried out a double-tap strike on southern Lebanon’s Nabatieh al-Fawqa, and another strike on Kfar Tebnit, also in southern Lebanon, according to the country’s state-run National News Agency.