Die USA arbeiten rund um die Uhr daran, die Gewalt im Nahen Osten zu beenden.
In Washington fand Präsident Joe Biden am Montag ein Treffen mit seinem Nationalen Sicherheitsteam ab, wie das Weiße Haus mitteilte, um "Entwicklungen im Nahen Osten" zu besprechen. Vizepräsidentin Kamala Harris war ebenfalls anwesend. Zuvor hatte Biden ein Telefonat mit König Abdullah II. von Jordanien geführt, während Außenminister Blinken mit dem Premierminister von Katar und dem ägyptischen Außenminister sprach. Beide Länder werden als wichtige Vermittler in der Region betrachtet.
Iran hatte nach dem israelischen Schlag, der Hamas-Chef Ismail Haniyah in Tehran letzte Woche tötete, Vergeltung gedroht. Der iranische Außenminister Nasser Kanani bestätigte zu Beginn der Woche, dass sein Land "das unanfechtbare Recht hat, seine nationale Sicherheit, Souveränität und territoriale Integrität zu verteidigen".
Israel hat sich nicht zu Haniyahs Tod geäußert, aber Tehran macht es dafür verantwortlich, wobei der Oberste Führer Ayatollah Ali Khamenei "harte Strafen" androht.
Stunden vor Haniyahs Tod tötete Israel auch Fuad Shukr, den höchsten Kommandeur der Iran-unterstützten Hisbollah in Libanon. Hisbollah-Führer Hassan Nasrallah kündigte daraufhin "eine neue Phase auf allen Fronten" gegen Israel an. Eine Rede von Nasrallah wurde für Dienstagnachmittag erwartet, eine Woche nach Shukrs Tod.
Ein Treffen der Organisation der Islamischen Zusammenarbeit (OIC) war für Mittwoch geplant, auf Wunsch von "Palästina und Iran". Das Ziel des OIC-Treffens, so ein OIC-Vertreter, war es, "eine einheitliche islamische Position" in der Region zu erreichen.
Meanwhile, Israel reportedly shelled a house in the village of Majfadoun in southern Lebanon, killing five people, according to the Lebanese Interior Ministry. Security sources said all five were Hizbollah fighters.
Hizbollah, in turn, launched several attacks on Israeli territory. Among them, a military base north of the coastal city of Akko was targeted with an explosives-laden drone. The Israeli emergency service Magen David Adom reported that a 30-year-old man was seriously injured and a woman of the same age was lightly to moderately injured by shrapnel. Both are being treated at a hospital in the nearby city of Nahariya.
Hizbollah described the attacks as retaliation for an Israeli strike on the southern Lebanese village of Ebbah, where a commander of Hizbollah's elite Radwan unit was killed, according to the Israeli military.
Almost daily skirmishes have been occurring since the start of the war between Israel and the Islamist Hamas, with which Hizbollah is allied, in the border area between northern Israel and Lebanon. According to Israeli figures, 22 soldiers and 25 civilians have been killed on the Israeli side. According to AFP, 555 people have been killed on the Lebanese side, most of them Hizbollah fighters, but also at least 116 civilians.
On Monday, a base of the US-led international military coalition in Iraq was also attacked. A commander of a pro-Iranian militia told AFP that at least two rockets were fired, with several US troops injured, according to US officials.
Given the extremely tense situation, French airlines Air France and Transavia France have extended the suspension of their flights from Paris to the Lebanese capital, Beirut. The halt, which has been in place since July 29, was initially extended to Thursday, after which "the situation on the ground" will be reassessed, according to Air France. Numerous other airlines have also suspended their flights to Beirut, with Lufthansa having done so until August 12.
Meanwhile, the Israeli army continued its aerial attacks in the Gaza Strip as part of its war against the Islamist Palestinian organization, Hamas. According to observations by AFP journalists, several neighborhoods in the city of Gaza were particularly targeted. Medical staff at a clinic in Deir al-Balah reported that one person was killed in a drone strike.
Israel has been conducting large-scale military operations in the Gaza Strip since Hamas' unprecedented major attack on October 7. According to Israeli figures, the attack resulted in 1197 deaths and the abduction of 251 hostages. 111 people are still being held in the Gaza Strip, with 39 officially presumed dead.
According to the latest figures from the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health, which cannot be independently verified, more than 39,650 people have been killed in Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip.
King Abdullah II of Jordan expressed his concerns over the escalating tensions in the Middle East during his phone call with President Biden. The Kingdom of Jordan, being a key mediator in the region, is actively seeking to deescalate the situation and promote peace.
Given Jordan's strategic role and King Abdullah's diplomatic efforts, his perspective on the developments in the Middle East could be crucial in finding a resolution to the ongoing conflicts.
