Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza
Lebanon's Prime Minister Najib Mikati suggested on Friday that Hezbollah may abide by a UN resolution to withdraw militants to north of the Litani River, as the government seeks a ceasefire with Israel after its deadliest attack on Beirut.
Mr Mikati said his government was keen to implement UNSCR 1701, pointing out that Hezbollah is also part of the cabinet.
“The diplomatic solution is on the table, and Hezbollah is a partner in the government and agrees to implement the 1701,” the Prime Minister said, as he called for an immediate ceasefire and end to Israel's bombardment of the country.
The resolution was adopted in 2006 to end the month-long war between Hezbollah and Israel. One of it multitude of terms requires any non-state armed factions, such as Hezbollah, to disarm and withdraw from the area between the Israel-Lebanon border and the Litani.
The resolution has never been fully implemented in part because Israel has repeatedly violated Lebanese airspace – prohibited under the agreement.
Lebanon is committed to “the deployment of the army in the south and the bolstering of its presence along the border”, Mr Mikati affirmed after a meeting of his cabinet. “Hezbollah is in agreement on this issue,” he added.
He also said that Lebanon's Foreign Ministry would ask the UN Security Council to issue a resolution calling for a “full and immediate ceasefire”.
His remarks came after at least 22 people were killed in an Israeli strike on central Beirut, the deadliest in the latest escalation.
While defeating Israel militarily remains Hezbollah's priority, it is open to any efforts to stop “the aggression”, the head of the Lebanese group's media office, Mohammad Afif, said in a televised press conference on Friday.
“You [Israel] have barely seen anything yet. What happened in Haifa, Acre, and Safed over the last 10 days is only the beginning,” he said.
“We are not living in 1982, when the Israeli tanks reached Beirut and changed the political balance. I won't say any more than that.”
Two soldiers were killed and three others injured when Israeli forces targeted a Lebanese army post in the village of Kafra, southern Lebanon, on Friday, the Lebanese armed forces said.
Israeli forces also fired at an observation post belonging to the Unifil peacekeeping force at its main base at Naqoura in southern Lebanon on Friday, injuring two people, a UN source said. Israeli forces breached the perimeter of another Unifil position they had fired at on Thursday, the source added.
The Israeli army said it expresses deep concern over incidents of this kind and “is currently conducting a thorough review at the highest levels of command to determine the details”.
On Thursday, two Indonesian peacekeepers were injured when the Israeli military fired at an observation tower in their compound in southern Lebanon, UN officials said. Mr Mikati condemned attacks on peacekeeping forces, labelling it a crime.
Hezbollah's deputy leader Naim Qassem on Tuesday declared the group's support for a ceasefire with Israel without linking it to a truce in Gaza as a precondition for the first time, indicating a shift in its stance after significant setbacks.
The group has suffered severe blows in the past few weeks, from the assassination of its leadership to the explosion of booby-trapped pagers and walkie-talkies used by members, to air strikes hitting its premises in Lebanon and Syria. While the group attempts to rebuild, Israel has launched a ground invasion into south Lebanon in a bid to destroy Hezbollah's military capabilities and infrastructure in the region.
At least 2,141 people have been killed in Lebanon since October 8 last year when Hezbollah opened a front with Israel in support of its ally Hamas in Gaza.
Last week, The National reported that Israel had initially agreed to a ceasefire with Hezbollah but later “caught mediators off guard” by assassinating the group's leader Hassan Nasrallah, and intensifying its attacks on Lebanon.
Despite its setbacks, the group has continued to launch rockets at Israel. A Thai worker was killed in northern Israel as a result of fallen munitions, probably fired from Lebanese territory, the Israeli military said. The Israeli air force said it killed a Hezbollah commander responsible for attacks with anti-tank missiles on the Ramot Naftali area of northern Israel.
Rocket sirens were heard in northern Israel's Akka on Friday and further south in Haifa after rockets were reportedly fired from Lebanon. Israel's army radio said 20 rockets were fired towards Israel. Israeli media also reported significant damage at a factory in Haifa's Kiryat Bialik, with no immediate reports of casualties.
EA Sports FC 26
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3/5
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
Company%20profile
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England v South Africa schedule
- First Test: Starts Thursday, Lord's, 2pm (UAE)
- Second Test: July 14-18, Trent Bridge, Nottingham, 2pm
- Third Test: The Oval, London, July 27-31, 2pm
- Fourth Test: Old Trafford, Manchester, August 4-8
Sinopharm vaccine explained
The Sinopharm vaccine was created using techniques that have been around for decades.
“This is an inactivated vaccine. Simply what it means is that the virus is taken, cultured and inactivated," said Dr Nawal Al Kaabi, chair of the UAE's National Covid-19 Clinical Management Committee.
"What is left is a skeleton of the virus so it looks like a virus, but it is not live."
This is then injected into the body.
"The body will recognise it and form antibodies but because it is inactive, we will need more than one dose. The body will not develop immunity with one dose," she said.
"You have to be exposed more than one time to what we call the antigen."
The vaccine should offer protection for at least months, but no one knows how long beyond that.
Dr Al Kaabi said early vaccine volunteers in China were given shots last spring and still have antibodies today.
“Since it is inactivated, it will not last forever," she said.
UAE jiu-jitsu squad
Men: Hamad Nawad and Khalid Al Balushi (56kg), Omar Al Fadhli and Saeed Al Mazroui (62kg), Taleb Al Kirbi and Humaid Al Kaabi (69kg), Mohammed Al Qubaisi and Saud Al Hammadi (70kg), Khalfan Belhol and Mohammad Haitham Radhi (85kg), Faisal Al Ketbi and Zayed Al Kaabi (94kg)
Women: Wadima Al Yafei and Mahra Al Hanaei (49kg), Bashayer Al Matrooshi and Hessa Al Shamsi (62kg)
Cricket World Cup League 2 Fixtures
Saturday March 5, UAE v Oman, ICC Academy (all matches start at 9.30am)
Sunday March 6, Oman v Namibia, ICC Academy
Tuesday March 8, UAE v Namibia, ICC Academy
Wednesday March 9, UAE v Oman, ICC Academy
Friday March 11, Oman v Namibia, Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Saturday March 12, UAE v Namibia, Sharjah Cricket Stadium
UAE squad
Ahmed Raza (captain), Chirag Suri, Muhammad Waseem, CP Rizwan, Vriitya Aravind, Asif Khan, Basil Hameed, Rohan Mustafa, Kashif Daud, Zahoor Khan, Junaid Siddique, Karthik Meiyappan, Akif Raja, Rahul Bhatia
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
The Cockroach
(Vintage)
Ian McEwan
PSA DUBAI WORLD SERIES FINALS LINE-UP
Men’s:
Mohamed El Shorbagy (EGY)
Ali Farag (EGY)
Simon Rosner (GER)
Tarek Momen (EGY)
Miguel Angel Rodriguez (COL)
Gregory Gaultier (FRA)
Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY)
Nick Matthew (ENG)
Women's:
Nour El Sherbini (EGY)
Raneem El Welily (EGY)
Nour El Tayeb (EGY)
Laura Massaro (ENG)
Joelle King (NZE)
Camille Serme (FRA)
Nouran Gohar (EGY)
Sarah-Jane Perry (ENG)
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
MEDIEVIL%20(1998)
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDeveloper%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20SCE%20Studio%20Cambridge%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Sony%20Computer%20Entertainment%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EConsole%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20PlayStation%2C%20PlayStation%204%20and%205%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203.5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
If you go
The flights
Etihad flies direct from Abu Dhabi to San Francisco from Dh5,760 return including taxes.
The car
Etihad Guest members get a 10 per cent worldwide discount when booking with Hertz, as well as earning miles on their rentals. A week's car hire costs from Dh1,500 including taxes.
The hotels
Along the route, Motel 6 (www.motel6.com) offers good value and comfort, with rooms from $55 (Dh202) per night including taxes. In Portland, the Jupiter Hotel (https://jupiterhotel.com/) has rooms from $165 (Dh606) per night including taxes. The Society Hotel https://thesocietyhotel.com/ has rooms from $130 (Dh478) per night including taxes.
More info
To keep up with constant developments in Portland, visit www.travelportland.com. Good guidebooks include the Lonely Planet guides to Northern California and Washington, Oregon & the Pacific Northwest.
Abu Dhabi GP schedule
Friday: First practice - 1pm; Second practice - 5pm
Saturday: Final practice - 2pm; Qualifying - 5pm
Sunday: Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (55 laps) - 5.10pm
The Gandhi Murder
- 71 - Years since the death of MK Gandhi, also christened India's Father of the Nation
- 34 - Nationalities featured in the film The Gandhi Murder
- 7 - million dollars, the film's budget
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20APPLE%20M3%20MACBOOK%20AIR%20(13%22)
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Mobile phone packages comparison
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
Developer: Treyarch, Raven Software
Publisher: Activision
Console: PlayStation 4 & 5, Windows, Xbox One & Series X/S
Rating: 3.5/5
French Touch
Carla Bruni
(Verve)
The bio
Favourite book: Peter Rabbit. I used to read it to my three children and still read it myself. If I am feeling down it brings back good memories.
Best thing about your job: Getting to help people. My mum always told me never to pass up an opportunity to do a good deed.
Best part of life in the UAE: The weather. The constant sunshine is amazing and there is always something to do, you have so many options when it comes to how to spend your day.
Favourite holiday destination: Malaysia. I went there for my honeymoon and ended up volunteering to teach local children for a few hours each day. It is such a special place and I plan to retire there one day.
FIGHT%20CARD
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DIVINE%20INTERVENTOIN
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Match info
Wolves 0
Arsenal 2 (Saka 43', Lacazette 85')
Man of the match: Shkodran Mustafi (Arsenal)
Turning%20waste%20into%20fuel
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