Israel-Gaza updates: Netanyahu weighs plan to force civilians out of north Gaza

The plan does not say if Palestinians could eventually return to northern Gaza.

Last Updated: September 22, 2024, 8:37 AM EDT

Israel and Hezbollah are exchanging hundreds of cross-border strikes in the wake of the shocking explosions of wireless devices across Lebanon.

Sep 19, 2024, 5:37 AM EDT

Lebanon death toll rises after device explosions

At least 37 people -- including two children -- were killed across the country by exploding communication devices on Tuesday and Wednesday, Lebanese Health Minister Firass Al-Abyad said in a press conference Thursday. About 3,000 people were injured, he said.

"It is certain that what happened in terms of aggression is considered a war crime, as the majority of the injuries were recorded in civilian areas and not in the battlefield, and the government is doing its duty and has called for a meeting of the U.N. Security Council, and human rights organizations are doing their duty on this issue,” Al-Abyad said.

A walkie-talkie that was exploded inside a house is seen in Baalbek, east Lebanon, Sept. 18, 2024.
AP

Hezbollah said 20 of its members were killed in Wednesday's walkie-talkie explosions. Another 11 were killed in Tuesday's pager explosions in Lebanon and Syria, bringing the overall death toll for the group to 31.

Israel was responsible for Tuesday's explosions, a source confirmed to ABC News, in which pagers detonated across Beirut and southern Lebanon. Walkie-talkies exploded on Wednesday.

-ABC News' Morgan Winsor, Nasser Atta and Ghazi Balkiz

Sep 19, 2024, 10:48 AM EDT

IDF carrying out strikes in Lebanon

The Israel Defense Forces said it is carrying out strikes in Lebanon to "degrade Hezbollah’s terrorist capabilities and infrastructure," according to a statement.

"The Hezbollah terrorist organization has turned southern Lebanon into a combat zone. For decades, Hezbollah has weaponized civilian homes, dug tunnels beneath them, and used civilians as human shields. The IDF is operating to bring security to northern Israel in order to enable the return of residents to their homes, as well as to achieve of all of the war goals," the IDF said in a statement.

The strikes come after two consecutive days of explosions of pagers and walkie-talkie devices in Lebanon, which left at least 37 people dead.

Sep 19, 2024, 7:39 AM EDT

Israeli arrested over Iran-directed plot to kill Netanyahu, police say

Israeli police and the Shin Bet intelligence service foiled an alleged plot to kill Prime Minister Benjamin Netanhayu and other prominent individuals, according to details of an indictment released on Thursday.

Moti Maman, a 73-year-old Israeli businessman from the city of Ashkelon, is accused of twice smuggling himself into Iran via Turkey to meet with intelligence officials directing would-be plots from Tehran.

FILE -Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, left and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant attend a press conference in the Kirya military base in Tel Aviv, Israel, Oct. 28, 2023.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant (R) attend a press conference in the Kirya military base in Tel Aviv, Israel, Oct. 28, 2023.
Abir Sultan/AP, FILE

The discussions allegedly included potential plans to attack Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar and former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, among others.

Police and Shin Bet said the alleged plots were intended as retaliation for the killing of Ismail Hanieyh in Tehran in July, which Iran blamed on Israel.

A joint police and Shin Bet statement also accused Maman of discussing the possibility of acting as a money courier for others in Israel, locating Russian and American elements for the elimination of Tehran's opponents in Europe and the U.S. and recruiting Mossad personnel as double agents.

"The Israeli citizen demanded an advance payment of $1 million dollars before performing any action," police and Shin Bet said. "Iranian agents refused his request and informed him they would contact him in the future."

Maman allegedly received around $558,000 -- paid in euros -- for attending the meetings with Iranian intelligence personnel.

-ABC News' Jordana Miller and David Brennan

Sep 18, 2024, 10:10 PM EDT

Israeli forces conduct airstrike on school in Gaza City

Israeli forces conducted an airstrike on what they claim were Hamas terrorists operating within a command and control center embedded inside a school in Gaza City, Israeli Defense Forces said in a statement Wednesday.

Ten people were killed from the strike, the Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health said.

"A short while ago, with the direction of IDF and ISA intelligence, the IAF conducted a precise strike on Hamas terrorists operating within a command and control center embedded inside a compound that previously served as the 'Ibn Al-Haytam' School in the area of Gaza City," the IDF said in a statement.

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