US troops arrive in Israel

American troops have arrived in Israel as the country prepares for an exchange of attacks with Iran.
Components for a terminal high-altitude area defence (Thaad) missile system, alongside a crew to operate it, will “continue to arrive” in Israel, a Pentagon spokesman said on Tuesday.
“The battery will be fully operationally capable in the near future, but for security reasons we will not discuss timelines,” the spokesman said.
Around 100 American military personnel in total will be sent to operate the system – the first time US troops have been deployed in combat in Israel during the current crisis.
The US has sent the Thaad missile system as Israel races to plug gaps in its stock piles amid warnings that interceptor missiles were running low.
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We’ll be back soon with more updates and analysis. 
In the meantime, here’s the headlines from today:
Washington has given Lebanon a “guarantee” that Israel will reduce the number of air strikes it carries out on Beirut, the country’s prime minister said.
Najib Mikati said he received “absolute American guarantees” about Beirut being spared. The last time the capital was hit was on Thursday.
It follows reports that US pressure had led to Israel cutting back on the number of strikes against Hezbollah in Lebanon’s capital.
But this was quickly shut down by Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, who said on Monday that the military would continue to strike Hezbollah targets across Lebanon “without mercy”.
“I want to make it clear: we will continue to hit Hezbollah mercilessly in all parts of Lebanon – also in Beirut,” Mr Netanyahu stated.
The US has threatened Israel with an arms embargo until the Jewish state resolves the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, according to reports.
The White House expressed concern over the “deterioration of the humanitarian situation in Gaza in recent weeks” in a letter addressed to Yoav Gallant, the Israeli defence minister.
The letter stated that Israel had 30 days to resolve the crisis or face the removal of military aid and weapons.
The Government has announced fresh sanctions on organisations involved in the construction of Israeli settler outposts in the West Bank.
The sanctions target seven settler outposts or organisations and were taken under Britain’s global human rights sanctions regime, the notice showed.
“Today’s measures will help bring accountability to those who have supported and perpetrated such heinous abuses of human rights,” David Lammy, the foreign secretary, said.
“The Israeli government must crack down on settler violence and stop settler expansion on Palestinian land. As long as violent extremists remain unaccountable, the UK and the international community will continue to act.”
It follows calls by David Cameron, the former foreign secretary, to impose sanctions on two Israeli cabinet ministers.
Israelis have held funerals for Israeli soldiers who were killed in Hezbollah’s drone strike on a Golani training base in northern Israel.
Naim Kassem, Hezbollah’s deputy, has called for a ceasefire in Lebanon and in Gaza.
“I’m telling the Israelis, the solution is to stop firing,” he said.
If Israel continues to attack Hezbollah, two million Israelis in the north will face daily threats, he added.
“The solution is a ceasefire… after a ceasefire, the [Israeli] settlers can return to the north,” he added.
Israel has issued military evacuation orders affecting more than a quarter of Lebanon, the UN refugee agency said on Tuesday.
“People are heeding these calls to evacuate, and they’re fleeing with almost nothing,” the UN refugee agency’s Middle East director, Rema Jamous Imseis, said.
Hezbollah said it will continue to attack all areas of Israel, across the centre, north and south. 
It comes after a rocket launched by the Lebanese terror group killed four soldiers and injured 60 more when it hit a training base in Binyamina, northern Israel.
American troops have arrived in Israel where they will operate a terminal high-altitude area defence (Thaad) missile system, the Pentagon has said.
“Over the coming days, additional US military personnel and Thaad battery components will continue to arrive in Israel,” a Pentagon spokesman said.
“The battery will be fully operational capable in the near future, but for operations security reasons we will not discuss timelines.”
Around 100 American military personnel will be sent to Israel to operate the system.
Giorgia Meloni, the Italian prime minister, said on Tuesday that Israeli attacks on Unifil were unacceptable and unjustified, writes Josephine McKenna from Rome.
“In recent days, for the first time in a year of Israeli military action, the positions of the Italian military contingent involved in the UN UNIFIL mission were struck by the Israeli army. Even though there were no casualties or major damage, I think it is unacceptable,” Ms Meloni said.
‘’We demand the safety of our soldiers is guaranteed, both those engaged in the UN Unifil mission and those engaged in the bilateral Mibil mission, who together with the rest of the international community have contributed for years to stability along the Israeli-Lebanese border.”
“We therefore believe that the attitude of the Israeli forces is completely unjustified, in addition to being a blatant violation of the provisions of UN Security Council Resolution 1701.”
Ms Meloni is planning to visit Lebanon later this week, while foreign minister, Antonio Tajani, will visit Israel next week.
The foreign office said it strongly condemns “inciteful” remarks made by the likes of Itamar Ben-Gvir but said it would not comment on future sanctions designations.
A spokesman said: “The UK strongly condemns settler violence and inciteful remarks such as those made by Israel’s National Security Minister Ben-Gvir, which threaten the status-quo of the Holy Sites in Jerusalem.”
“We do not comment on future sanctions designations.”
Sir Keir Starmer’s spokesman added: “As you know, the UK has already sanctioned a number of people responsible for settler violence in the West Bank and we will obviously continue to take action to challenge those who undermine a two-state solution.”
It comes after David Cameron, the former foreign secretary, urged Labour to revive his plans to sanction Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, who he described as “extremists”.
Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel’s security minister, was spotted at the scene of a shooting in Ashdod, southern Israel.
Earlier we reported that he was one of two “extremist” ministers David Cameron, the former foreign secretary, considered sanctioning, before July’s general election got in the way. 
Read the full story here.
Earlier we reported that a man had been killed in a shooting on a highway in Ashdod, southern Israel (see 9.55am post). 
Israeli police have not confirmed that one of its officers was killed in the attack, which took place on a highway in Ashdod, south of Tel Aviv.
“A short time ago a terrorist just came over to the main road here next to Tel Aviv, next to Yavne, and started shooting towards a police car, then went on and shot other ongoing cars and wounded our people,” a police spokesman said.
“Luckily enough he was neutralised and killed by a citizen who was here on the way.”
Israel is quickly running out of Iron Dome interceptor missiles, military analysts have warned.
The US is rapidly moving to plug gaps in its defences, including by deploying a terminal high-altitude area defence (Thaad) missile system to Israel.
But analysts warned this may not be enough as the US races to supply defensive weapons to both Israel and Ukraine.
“If Iran responds to an Israel attack [with a massive air strike campaign], and Hezbollah joins in too, Israel air defences will be stretched,” Dana Stroul, a former senior US defence official, told the Financial Times.
“The US can’t continue supplying Ukraine and Israel at the same pace. We are reaching a tipping point.”
It comes as Israel prepares to launch a retaliatory strike against Iran, which fired around 200 missiles at Israeli targets earlier this month.
The majority of those killed in an Israeli air strike on a building in north Lebanon were women and children, according to the United Nations.
“What we are hearing is that amongst the 22 people killed were 12 women and two children,” a UN human rights spokesman told a Geneva press briefing.
“We understand it was a four-story residential building that was struck. With these factors in mind, we have real concerns with respect to IHL (International Humanitarian Law), so the laws of war, and the principles of distinction, proportion and proportionality,” he said, before calling for an investigation.
Yoav Gallant, the Israeli defence minister, told hostages’ family members on Tuesday there was no ceasefire deal with Hamas in sight.
“There’s stagnation, and I don’t see progress right now in this period, I’m very sorry to say,” he told families.
He went on to say that Hamas had “hardened” its operations after Israel’s conflict with Hezbollah escalated. 
Hamas hopes “something will happen that will serve them”, he added.
Germany has suspended arms deliveries to Israel pending assurances from Benjamin Netanyahu that they will not be used in genocide, according to a US media outlet.
Citing sources close to the German-Israeli arms talks, Politico said the sale of weapons has been blocked even though Berlin publicly insists there is no arms embargo. Similar claims were also reported by the German tabloid Bild over the weekend.
The sale of weapons was reportedly blocked by German Green party ministers Annalena Baerbock and Robert Habeck, who sought further assurances that Israel would respect international humanitarian law.
German transfers of arms to Israel have already slowed down significantly, with no exports approved by Berlin since March 2024.
“Arms deliveries to Israel are about compliance with the rules of international humanitarian law,” a source told Politico. “The reason for requesting such a commitment is that a German administrative court could otherwise put a stop to it.”
A separate report in Suddeutsche Zeitung, a German newspaper, on Tuesday said Mr Netanyahu has now given the assurances Germany is seeking, clearing the way for weapons transfers to proceed soon. 
A senior Amazon employee has provoked a backlash after wearing a controversial pro-Palestine necklace in a promotional video for the business, writes Samuel Montgomery.
Ruba Borno, vice president of Global Specialists and Partner Organizations for Amazon Web Services, was seen in an official company video wearing a pendant shaped like the map of Israel emblazoned with the Palestinian flag.
The video was published to promote a company conference set to take place in autumn in Las Vegas.
Ms Borno’s necklace triggered an angry response on social media, with some users claiming it was inappropriate given that another Amazon employee remains a Hamas hostage after being abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz in the terror attack on Oct 7.
Read the full story here.
The statement from Benjamin Netanyahu’s office, emphasising that Israel makes its own decisions vis-à-vis Iran, is a perfect example of why he is considered the master of spin. 
A report in the Washington Post about Israel telling the US it will not strike Iran’s nuclear facilities was likely leaked from Mr Netanyahu’s office. 
Yet it was followed by a statement shortly, in which Mr Netanyahu stressed his ability to “stand up to the US” – as he often brags about.
Leaks and speaking with different tongues, depending on whether it’s to Israeli or international media, are an integral part of Mr Netanyahu’s media strategy. It is designed to sow confusion while also trying to appease both Washington and his hardline coalition partners at the same time.
Mr Netanyahu is also keenly aware that Joe Biden is a lame duck who will not abandon Israel in the middle of a multi-front war, something the prime minister is trying to exploit.
There is little doubt that Mr Netanyahu is hoping Donald Trump will win the election, which would make it easier for him to try and persuade the US to launch a joint attack on Iran’s nuclear programme.
The looming attack on Iran could therefore just be a taste of what’s to come.
The shooter reportedly opened fire on people in separate locations along the highway between Ashdod and Yavne. 
Traffic has been stopped at the scene as emergency services respond to the incident.
A man has died and four more are injured after a suspected shooting on Route 4 in Ashdod, southern Israel.
Hebrew media reported that a shooter fired at a police officer before being shot dead.
Benjamin Netanyahu has reiterated calls for the United Nations to remove its peacekeepers in Lebanon “out of harm’s way”.
“The charge that Israel deliberately attacked Unifil personnel is totally false,” he said.
UNIFIL – get out of harm’s way! pic.twitter.com/vCnw7XLWCo
The IDF has released footage taken inside a Hezbollah bunker. 
It shows dozens of weapons, including what appear to be machine guns and sniper rifles, sprawled out across single beds.
There are also hundreds of cans of tinned food stacked near three motorbikes.
The Israeli military said it killed “dozens” of Hezbollah terrorists in “close-quarters combat” and strikes in Lebanon.
The air force struck more than 200 Hezbollah targets over the last 24 hours, the military said, many of which were “deep within Lebanon”. 
A funeral is being held for Alon Amitay, an Israeli soldier who was killed in a Hezbollah drone strike on Sunday. 
The Lebanese terror group fired a drone at a Golani training camp in Binyamina, northern Israel, late on Sunday, killing four soldiers and injuring 60 more.
David Cameron said he considered sanctioning two Israeli cabinet ministers when he was foreign secretary.
Lord Cameron, who served as foreign secretary under the last Conservative government, urged Labour to “look at” imposing sanctions against “extremists” Bezalel Smotrich, Israel’s finance minister, and Itamar Ben-Gvir, the country’s security minister.
“I think there are other things we can do to put pressure on Benjamin  Netanyahu, and say, ‘of course we respect your right to self-defence but we do want you to act within the law’,” Lord Cameron told the Today programme. 
Lord Cameron added that it was right to back Israel’s right to self-defence but said it should not be given a “blank cheque”.
Read the full story here.
Iranian state TV has shown Esmail Qaan, the top commander of Iran’s Quds force, at a memorial for a senior Revolutionary Guards commander who was killed in Lebanon. 
Qaan had disappeared from public view following an Israeli air strike, sparking rumours that he may have been killed.
The United Nations said it will not withdraw its peacekeepers from Lebanon after warnings from Benjamin Netanyahu.
The Israeli prime minister issued a strong warning to the UN on Sunday urging it to remove its peacekeepers “out of harm’s way”.
It came after five peacekeepers were injured in Israeli strikes, which the UN claimed were “deliberate”.
Israel has told the US it will not strike Iranian nuclear or oil sites in retaliation for Tehran’s massive missile attack earlier this month.
Benjamin Netanyahu assured Joe Biden that Israel would only target the Iranian military, the Washington Post reports.
A statement released by Mr Netanyahu’s office later said Israel would listen to the US but make its own decisions.
While most of the focus has been on Hezbollah’s huge collection of precision-guided missiles, Israel has found that much smaller and less aggressive drones are posing just as big of a challenge, if not bigger.
Some experts fear that the rise in these attacks have exposed a possible flaw in the Iron Dome: it wasn’t designed to deal with drones.
The drones are often flown through Israel’s northern mountains and valleys at “a very low altitude”, according to Amnon Sofrin, the former head of Mossad’s intelligence directorate.
That the drones are flown at low altitude means they are often under the Iron Dome’s radar, making it “very difficult” for the Israeli military to shoot them down, as played out in Binyamina on Sunday and Yemen in July.
Read the full story here.
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