Eight Israeli soldiers killed in clashes with Hezbollah in Lebanon

Casualties during heavy fighting in border areas come days after Israel launched ground incursion

Eight Israeli soldiers have been killed and a number of others wounded in three exchanges with Hezbollah in heavy fighting inside Lebanon.

The largest group of soldiers, from the commando brigade and including an officer, was involved in a clash with Hezbollah in a village north of the Israeli border community of Misgav Am, while two other soldiers from the Golani brigade were killed in a separate incident.

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Gulf states call on international community to fulfil responsibilities in the region – as it happened

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Danish police said on Wednesday morning that they were investigating two blasts in the vicinity of Israel’s embassy in Copenhagen.

“No one has been injured, and we are carrying out initial investigations at the scene,” Copenhagen police said in a statement. They said a “possible connection” to the Israeli embassy, which is located in the area, was being investigated.

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Why official register of MPs’ financial interests is now a must-read

Revelations about gifts of clothes and tickets to sporting events have put MPs’ declarations in the spotlight

Revelations that Keir Starmer and his team have accepted donations of clothes, accommodation and sports tickets have focused attention on the official register of MPs’ interests, usually published every couple of weeks.

Here are some highlights from the latest version, published on Wednesday.

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Starmer vows to turn page on UK’s relationship with the EU

PM promises ‘constructive’ relations, despite resisting talks with the bloc on a proposed youth mobility scheme

Keir Starmer has vowed to turn the page on the UK’s relationship with the EU, despite differences with Brussels over proposals for a European youth mobility scheme.

The prime minister said: “Of course, there will be challenges” in resetting relations but insisted he was “turning the page on the old way of doing these negotiations” in favour of a more “constructive” approach.

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US would not support Israeli attack on Iran’s nuclear sites, says Biden

Top Israeli diplomat at UN warns his country’s retaliation for Iranian missile attack will be heavier than Tehran ‘could ever have imagined’

Joe Biden has said he would not support an Israeli attack on Iranian nuclear sites, as the US sought to temper Israel’s response to Iran’s missile attack on Tuesday and contain a rapidly escalating regional conflict.

Biden’s comments came after the top Israeli diplomat at the UN warned his country’s retaliation for an Iranian salvo of nearly 200 ballistic missiles would be heavier than Tehran “could ever have imagined”.

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UK begins evacuating citizens from Lebanon as Israel’s offensive continues

First charter flight has left Beirut, says David Lammy, with officials planning ‘sea and air’ rescues if situation worsens

The UK has laid on a charter flight to evacuate Britons from Lebanon and said it is ready to commission more for the 5,000 nationals and their dependants remaining in the country.

Beirut’s international airport remains open but ministers and officials are preparing contingency plans for sea and air rescues via Cyprus should the security situation in Lebanon deteriorate to the point at which commercial flights are stopped.

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Dozens killed in Israeli strikes and ground operations in southern Gaza

At least 70 dead as Israeli strikes against Hamas continue despite attention shifting to Lebanon and Iran

More than 70 people have been killed in a series of intensive ground operations and airstrikes by the Israel Defense Forces in southern Gaza, Palestinian medical officials said on Wednesday.

Israel has continued to strike what it says are militant targets across Gaza nearly a year after Hamas’s 7 October attack triggered the war in the territory, and even as attention has shifted to Lebanon and Iran.

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Exclusive: Iran’s Khamenei warned Nasrallah of Israeli plot to kill him, sources say – Reuters

  1. Exclusive: Iran's Khamenei warned Nasrallah of Israeli plot to kill him, sources say  Reuters
  2. Fear, jubilation, jokes: Iranians react after missile attack on Israel  Al Jazeera English
  3. After the decapitation of Hizbullah, Iran could race for a nuclear bomb  The Economist
  4. IDF says commander of Iranian militia killed alongside Hezbollah official in Beirut  The Times of Israel
  5. Is Iran's 'axis of resistance' collapsing under Israeli attacks?  NBC News
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Migration during adolescence linked to increased psychosis risk, study finds

Risk found to be highest among black and north African people, as experts call for better mental health provision

People who migrate in adolescence have an increased risk of psychosis, researchers have found, noting the link is particularly strong among black and north African people.

While research has previously suggested migration could play a role in the increased risk of psychosis among people from ethnic minorities, the study suggests age could be an important factor.

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West planned for months to repel long-range Iranian attack – but Israel did not need them

Most of the defensive effort appears to have been undertaken by Israeli air defence systems

Quiet planning by the US, UK and other allies to help Israel repel an Iranian long-range attack have been going on for several months or more – but most of the defensive effort appears to have been undertaken by Israeli air defence systems.

The only reported military engagements in support of Israel were a dozen interceptors fired by two US warships in the eastern Mediterranean, while Jordan said its own air defence systems and air force were involved in targeting Iranian missiles.

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Keir Starmer pays back £6,000 worth of gifts and hospitality

Prime minister is covering cost of Taylor Swift tickets and designer clothing rental agreement after donations row

Keir Starmer has paid back more than £6,000 worth of gifts and hospitality, including Taylor Swift tickets and rented clothing for his wife, after a row over his acceptance of freebies.

The prime minister handed back some tickets and gifts he had received since he entered No 10 in July as he vowed to overhaul the rules on what ministers are allowed to accept.

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Israel bans UN secretary-general over anti-Israel actions: ‘Doesn’t deserve to set foot on Israeli soil’ – Fox News

  1. Israel bans UN secretary-general over anti-Israel actions: 'Doesn't deserve to set foot on Israeli soil'  Fox News
  2. Video: UN secretary general calls for ceasefire. Former Israeli prime minister calls him a ‘coward’  CNN
  3. 'The time for empty calls for deescalation is over,' says Israeli UN envoy after Iran missile attack  The Times of Israel
  4. Middle East latest: UN ponders how to calm the conflict as Israel battles militants on two fronts  ABC News
  5. Israel bars UN chief from the country over Iran attack response  Al Jazeera English
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Over 100 rockets cross from Lebanon into northern Israel on Rosh Hashanah – The Jerusalem Post

  1. Over 100 rockets cross from Lebanon into northern Israel on Rosh Hashanah  The Jerusalem Post
  2. IDF: Over 240 rockets fired from Lebanon at north, including 100 this evening  The Times of Israel
  3. Israel at War Day 361 | Israel Eases Emergency Guidelines; IDF Warns Residents of Beirut Suburb to Evacuate  Haaretz
  4. Hezbollah Targets Mossad Headquarters, Military Base Near Tel Aviv  NDTV
  5. Dozens of Lebanon rockets fired toward Israel's North, hits to 4 Metula houses  The Jerusalem Post
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