Politics USA imposes new sanctions against Iran

In response to the Iranian missile attack on Israel, the USA is imposing new sanctions against the Islamic Republic. Secretary of State Antony Blinken explained that these measures are aimed at cutting off the Iranian government's revenues for its nuclear programme, missile development and support for terrorist organizations.

The US sanctions announcement came at a time when Israel and its most important ally were in talks about Israel's plans for a military retaliation against Iran. Meanwhile, the highest Jewish holiday, Yom Kippur, has begun in Israel. All public life in the country has come to a standstill.

According to the US State Department, the new US sanctions against Iran affect companies involved in the Iranian oil trade as well as several ships transporting Iranian oil. Iran fired around 200 missiles at Israel on October 1. Israel threatened a "deadly and precise" retaliation. US President Joe Biden advised Israel against attacking both Iran's nuclear facilities and its oil industry. US officials feared that a strike on Iran's facilities could prompt Tehran to attack oil fields in Saudi Arabia and possibly force the US to intervene militarily, the Wall Street Journal wrote.

Report: Iran warns Arab countries

Iran has warned Arab countries that it could take retaliatory measures against them if they allow Israel to use their airspace to attack targets in Iran, according to a report. Meanwhile, the EU also intends to impose new sanctions against Iran on Monday. According to diplomats, the member states want to react to Iran's delivery of ballistic missiles to Russia. This step is seen as a new breach of taboo due to the ongoing Russian war of aggression against Ukraine.

Meanwhile, the fighting between Israel and its enemies in Lebanon and the Gaza Strip continues. Although Yom Kippur is observed as a day of rest and fasting, Israeli soldiers in the combat zones are forbidden to fast, reported the Times of Israel. At the same time, Israel is on high alert in view of the ongoing rocket fire from Lebanon and the increasing tensions with Iran.

Fighting between Israel's army and Hezbollah continues

In the first few hours of the Yom Kippur holiday alone, more than 120 rockets were fired at Israel, the Israeli newspaper reported. In the evening, the military spoke of a total of 230 missiles fired at Israel over the course of Friday. Warning sirens continued to wail in the north of the country during the night, as the army announced.

The attack by two drones on the greater Tel Aviv area damaged a building in the seaside resort of Herzlia. According to the Israeli military, no people were injured. The air defenses had located two drones on their way to Israel and intercepted one of them. The military did not specify whether the damage to the building was caused by the unintercepted drone or by falling debris from defensive missiles.

The drones were presumably launched by the Hezbollah militia in Lebanon. Israel's military has massively stepped up its action against the pro-Iranian militia over the past three weeks. According to the Ministry of Health in Beirut, dozens of people were again killed in airstrikes in Lebanon. It remained unclear how many of them were members of Hezbollah. The information could not be independently verified.

Biden: Israel should not fire on UN peacekeepers

According to US President Joe Biden, he wants to ask the Israeli government to stop attacks on blue helmet soldiers in Lebanon. A journalist asked Biden during an appointment at the White House: "Are you asking Israel to stop attacking UN peacekeepers?" Biden replied: "Absolutely." According to the United Nations, two blue helmet soldiers from the UN mission Unifil were injured when two explosions occurred near an observation post at the headquarters in Nakura.

According to the UN, Israeli troops had previously fired on the headquarters and injured at least two UN soldiers. The UN observer mission has been monitoring the border area between Lebanon and Israel for decades. More than 10,000 UN soldiers from around 50 countries are involved. Israel accused Hezbollah of misusing areas near the blue helmet mission's bases for its own purposes. Meanwhile, Spain also summoned Israel's diplomatic representative to the Foreign Ministry to protest against the "unjustified attacks" on the UN peacekeepers.

USA wants a diplomatic solution

Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke on the phone with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati. Blinken reaffirmed the USA's commitment to a diplomatic solution to the conflict, according to his department. He also emphasized the importance of state institutions in stabilizing the country after the conflict and the need to fill the current presidential vacancy democratically. Blinken also expressed his sympathy for the civilian victims and displaced persons.

Hezbollah has been attacking Israel with rockets and grenades for a year - out of "solidarity" with the Islamist Hamas in the Gaza Strip, as it says. Israel wants to expel Hezbollah from the Israeli-Lebanese border so that around 60,000 evacuated Israelis can return to their homes. However, the pro-Iranian militia does not want to stop shelling until there is a ceasefire in the Gaza war. UN Resolution 1701 prohibits the presence of the militia in the border area. The Israeli military must therefore withdraw behind the so-called Blue Line - the Lebanese-Israeli border.

Nicaragua breaks off relations with Israel

Meanwhile, Nicaragua broke off diplomatic relations with Israel, according to an announcement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The authoritarian government of the Central American country accuses Israel of genocide against the Palestinian people. Israel's aggression against the Palestinians is now spreading to Lebanon and is also threatening Syria, Yemen and Iran.

SDA