BlackMask Breaking News

Divisions have emerged within the Iranian government over how to react to the Israeli killing of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, according to a report by the New York Times. Conservatives are said to be pushing for a strong retaliation, while moderates, led by President Masoud Pezeshkian, are advocating for restraint, four officials, including two members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps told the media outlet. The report noted that the death of Nasrallah has shaken Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, but that despite mourning his close ally’s death, Ayatollah remains calm. NN: For whom the bell tolls. Its time for Israeli AAA on the Supreme leader.

The Houthis claim they launched a ballistic missile targeting Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport.In a statement, the group’s military spokesperson said the missile, identified as a Palestine 2, was fired as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived in the country. The spokesperson did not provide further details on the missile’s impact or casualties.

President Joe Biden stated that the recent Israeli airstrike that killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah is “a measure of justice,” AFP reported. He emphasized that Nasrallah’s death serves as justice for many victims, including numerous Americans, Israelis and Lebanese civilians. Biden reaffirmed the United States’ commitment to Israel’s right to defend itself against groups supported by Iran, such as Hezbollah and Hamas. He announced that he directed the defense secretary to strengthen the US military presence in the Middle East to deter aggression and minimize the chances of a wider regional conflict.

Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed the leader of the Hezbollah terrorist organization Hassan Nasrallah died in its strike Friday against the group’s headquarters in Lebanon. “This is not the end of our toolbox. The message is simple, anyone who threatens the citizens of Israel – We will know how to reach them,” the IDF’s Chief of the General Staff, Ltf. Herzi Halevi said of the elimination of Nasrallah. The IDF attacked the Iran-backed terror proxy’s headquarters in southern Beirut, revealing that they had targeted Nasrallah. A Hezbollah media relations official initially claimed he was “fine and well,” but the Israelis confirmed his death early the next morning. At least two other people were killed and dozens were wounded, Lebanon’s health ministry said.On Friday, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin told reporters, “The United States was not involved in Israel’s operation,” noting there was “no advance warning,” from the Israelis. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cut short his trip to New York following his speech to the United Nations General Assembly where he warned Hezbollah about Israel’s right to go on the offensive.

“As long as Hezbollah chooses the path of war, Israel has no choice, and Israel has every right to remove this threat and return our citizens to their home safely and that’s exactly what we’re doing,” he said.

After his speech the prime minister’s office released a picture showing the Israeli leader in his New York hotel approving the operation against the terror chief.  Rich Goldberg, a senior adviser at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, saidl that Nasrallah’s death would prove a significant victory for Israel due to his close ties to Tehran. “People don’t appreciate that Nasrallah took over for Soleimani as senior strategist for Khamenei,” Goldberg explained. “Nasrallah had operational control of Lebanon and Syria: This is not just a  game-changer for Hezbollah, Lebanon and Syria, it’s a strategic game-changer for Tehran,” Goldberg explained. “We should assume that the IRGC is effectively in charge behind the scenes. Khamenei clearly had made a decision in recent weeks to avoid inviting Israeli strikes inside Iran.”

Israeli military said Friday it carried out an airstrike on the central headquarters of Hezbollah in Beirut, where a massive explosion leveled buildings in a southern district, sending clouds of orange and black smoke billowing in the skies. The strike in the Beirut suburb of Dahiyeh came shortly after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the U.N., vowing that Israel’s campaign against Hezbollah would continue. Not long before the explosion, thousands were massed in the suburb for the funeral of three Hezbollah members, including a senior commander, killed in earlier strikes. There was no immediate word on casualties in the strike. The Israeli army spokesman, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, said it targeted the main Hezbollah headquarters, located beneath residential buildings. Hezbollah’s Al-Manar TV said four buildings were reduced to rubble in the blast, so powerful it rattled windows and shook houses some 30 kilometers north of Beirut. Ambulances were seen headed to the scene of the explosions, sirens wailing. Earlier in the day, an Israeli airstrike killed a family of nine in a Lebanese border village, authorities said, as Lebanon struggled to deal with a rising death toll, a wave of tens of thousands fleeing their homes and the possibility of an all-out war between Israel and Hezbollah. Israel dramatically intensified its airstrikes in Lebanon this week, saying it is determined to put an end to more than 11 months of Hezbollah fire into its territory. The scope of Israel’s operation remains unclear, but officials have said a ground invasion to push the militant group away from the border is a possibility. Israel has moved thousands of troops toward the border in preparation. At the U.N., Netanyahu vowed to “continue degrading Hezbollah” until Israel achieves its goals, further dimming hopes for an internationally backed cease-fire. That has Lebanese fearing a repeat of the last Israel-Hezbollah war, in 2006, which lasted a month and caused heavy destruction over parts of their country. Or worse, they fear, Lebanon could suffer devastation on the scale caused in Gaza by Israel’s nearly yearlong campaign against Hamas. At least 25 people were killed in Israeli strikes early Friday, Health Minister Firass Abiad said, bringing the death toll in Lebanon this week to more than 720. He said the dead included dozens of women and children. The Israeli military said it carried out dozens of strikes over the course of two hours around the south on Friday, including in the cities of Sidon and Nabatiyeh. It said it was targeting Hezbollah rocket launchers and infrastructure. It said Hezbollah fired a volley of rockets toward the northern Israeli city of Tiberias.

Israel’s Beirut strike allegedly targeted Hezbollah chief

The target of Israel’s latest airstrike on the southern part of Beirut was Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah, Fox News reported on Friday. Moments ago, the Israeli Defense Forces launched an attack on Beirut’s Da’aheh district, stating that the militant group’s central headquarters were located there.

More to come…

NN: one can hope

Firefighters and a hazardous materials team responded to a rollover crash and fire involving a big rig carrying lithium-ion batteries Thursday near the Vincent Thomas Bridge in San Pedro.There were no injuries reported in the crash early Thursday afternoon near the busy shipping port. Details about what led to the rollover were not immediately available.

Traffic was backing up on and near the bridge. Flames and thick smoke could be seen coming from the shipping container on the trailer of the truck, which was on its side in the 900 block of North Seaside Avenue. There were reports of one battery exploding, the LA Fire Department said.

“Firefighters have created a large perimeter around the site and are in the defensive mode (keeping their distance with hose lines for protection),” the LAFD said. No evacuations were ordered early Thursday afternoon. The 47 Freeway was closed east of Ferry Street. “This afternoon, a semi-truck transporting lithium batteries overturned on Terminal Island. For the safety of everyone in the area, all traffic and bridges leading to and from Terminal Island have been temporarily shut down,” said Councilmember Tim McOsker. “I want to express my deep appreciation for the quick and proactive response and the leadership of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and the Pacific Maritime Association. Their swift actions in prioritizing worker safety during this incident have been instrumental in protecting everyone involved.” NN:

Israel carried out part of its device attack targeting Hezbollah by concealing explosives inside the batteries of pagers brought into Lebanon, according to two high-ranking Lebanese security officials, who said the technology was so advanced that it was virtually undetectable. Lebanese security officials watched a series of controlled explosions of some of the weaponized pagers, as investigations into who manufactured the wireless communication devices and how they made their way into Hezbollah’s pockets continued. The pagers used in the controlled explosions were  ones that were switched off at the time of the attack on September 17, which meant they did not receive the message that caused the compromised devices to detonate.  Thousands of explosions struck Hezbollah members last week, targeting their pagers on Tuesday, and then walkie-talkies a day later. In all, the blasts killed at least 37 people, including some children, and injured nearly 3,000, according to Lebanese health authorities, many of them civilian bystanders. The attack blindsided the group, which had opted for analogue technologies after forgoing cell phones to avoid Israeli infiltration. One of the Lebanese security sources said the way in which the explosive material had been hidden inside the pagers’ batteries was so sophisticated that it could not be detected, but did not elaborate further as to what sort of checks the devices had gone through before entering the country. The second high-ranking security source said that he had examined one of the compromised pagers and witnessed its controlled explosion. He tsaid  that the explosive material was “laced” inside the pager’s lithium battery and virtually undetectable. He added that he had never seen anything like it. “It had to be done in such a way to make it invisible,” Moorhouse said, adding that one way to do that could have been modifying the battery itself – implanting an electronic detonator and small explosive charge inside of its metal casing, which would have made it impossible to detect with imaging, for example X-rays. “These attacks represent a new development in warfare, where communication tools become weapons, simultaneously exploding across marketplaces, on street corners, and in homes as daily life unfolds,” UN human rights chief Volker Türk told the Security Council last Friday. “Authorities have reportedly dismantled unexploded devices in universities, banks, and hospitals.”

Yemen’s Houthi rebels fired a ballistic missile targeting a military site in Israel’s Tel Aviv, Houthi spokesperson Yahya Saree(pictured) said in a statement on Friday. Additionally, Saree claimed that the rebel group launched a drone attack on Israel’s city of Ashkelon, ensuring that “the two operations achieved their goal successfully.” Houthis will continue attacking targets in Israel in support of the people of Gaza and Lebanon, and the strikes will not stop until “the Israeli aggression on Gaza and Lebanon” ends. NN: Does anyone with a brain beeline that  bullshit