World Briefing: September 25, 2024
Israel's military says it is carrying out a new wave of "extensive" strikes in southern Lebanon and the Beqaa area. Fifteen people have been killed in the attacks, Lebanon's health ministry says. Earlier, Israel said it had intercepted a ballistic missile fired by Hezbollah towards Tel Aviv - the first such rocket to target the country's biggest city. Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran, says it is resisting Israeli "aggression" and acting in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. Israel says it aims to remove the threat from Hezbollah and return displaced residents. The UK PM has told British nationals in Lebanon to "leave immediately". Citizens from other countries - including the US, Canada, France and Japan - have also been urged to leave - BBC
Israel’s Northern Command Chief Major General Uri Gordin stated that the confrontation with Hezbollah has entered a "different phase" and that the IDF must be prepared for a "maneuver" while addressing armored corps soldiers. “The operation began with a very significant strike on Hezbollah's capabilities," Gordin said. "In light of this, we need to change the security situation. We must be very well-prepared for a maneuver and action." - Haaretz
A Hezbollah official told Reuters that the attack on members' pagers and other communication devices left 1,500 fighters out of commission because of their injuries, with many having been blinded or had their hands blown off. While that is a major blow, it represents a fraction of Hezbollah's strength, which a report for the U.S. Congress on Friday put at 40,000-50,000 fighters. Nasrallah has said the group has 100,000 fighters.
The victory plan that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will present to the White House this week asks the Biden administration to do something it has not achieved in the two and a half years since Russia invaded Ukraine: act quickly to support Kyiv’s campaign. While Western dawdling has amplified Ukraine’s losses, some Ukrainian officials, diplomats and analysts fear Kyiv’s aim to have the plan implemented before a new U.S. president takes office in January may be out of reach. U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield, reportedly briefed on the plan, said it “can work” but many privately question how. The specifics of Zelenskyy’s blueprint have been kept under wraps until it can be formally presented to President Joe Biden, but contours of the plan have emerged, including the need for fast action on decisions Western allies have been mulling since the full-scale invasion began in 2022. Zelenskyy has said he will also seek permission to use long-range weapons to strike deep inside Russian territory, another red line for some of Ukraine’s supporters. - AP
JPMorgan Chase and HSBC unwittingly processed payments for companies in Africa controlled by the deceased Russian warlord Yevgeny Prigozhin, as his sanctions-hit Wagner private army expanded across a continent where it has been accused of brutal human rights abuses. Leaked documents obtained by the Center for Advanced Defense Studies (C4ADS), a Washington-based think-tank, show that in 2017 a Sudanese company controlled by Prigozhin made purchases of industrial equipment from China that passed through large western banks. Wagner, which the US Treasury has accused of “mass executions, rape, child abductions and other brutalities against innocents” in Africa, became infamous for providing mercenary services to repressive dictators and for fighting in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The leaked documents show how Prigozhin, whose plane crashed last year after attempting a mutiny against Russian President Vladimir Putin, was able to establish a transnational criminal empire in natural resources in part by secretly hijacking the payments systems of western financial institutions - FT
