Israel marks Oct. 7 anniversary with strikes on Lebanon and Gaza. No sign of an end  to the ME war

Photo: A plume of smoke billows following an Israeli airstrike in which ten firefighters were killed in a building in the southern town of Baraachit, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.

• Israel marked a year since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attacks and pro-Palestinian protests were held around the world, with no sign of an end to the anguish and destruction in the Middle East consumed by conflict that has killed tens of thousands.
• Hundreds gathered for a ceremony at the site of the Nova music festival where Hamas militants killed an estimated 364 people as they stormed into Israel a year ago, killing 1,139 and taking some 250 hostage, according to Israeli officials.
• Hamas hailed its attack and fired rockets at Tel Aviv this morning, while the IDF issued evacuation warnings for much of northern Gaza in what appeared to be a major new offensive. More than 41,800 people have been killed in Israel’s yearlong assault on the Palestinian enclave, including more than 16,000 children, local officials say.
• Israel sent new troops to join its ground invasion and stepped up its bombing of southern Lebanon, in a campaign against Hezbollah that local officials say has killed more than 1,400 people. The Iran-backed militant group hit Israel’s northern city of Haifa in a rare attack.
• Ten firefighters were killed today in an Israeli attack on a building in the southern town of Baraachit, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.Ten firefighters were killed today in an Israeli attack on a building in the southern town of Baraachit, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.
• Iran’s top military commander is in “good health,” his deputy said, as mystery surrounds Esmail Qaani’s fate while Tehran braces for Israel’s promised retaliatory attack. CENTCOM chief Gen. Michael Kurilla visited the U.S. ally as Washington urges restraint.
• The U.S. mourns the death of “every innocent who died on October 7 and in the year since,” Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said in a statement today.
• The family members of British Embassy staff in Israel have been withdrawn from the country amid escalating tensions in the region, as a precautionary measure following escalation in the region
• The Israeli military says it is reviewing how Hezbollah rockets appeared to evade Israel’s air defense systems and hit the major northern city of Haifa in a rare attack.

NBC