Civil defence member tries to save a Palestinian baby after being pulled from underneath the rubble of a bombed house in Gaza. pic.twitter.com/xRnbggLjMS

— TIMES OF GAZA (@Timesofgaza) October 3, 2024

Oil price soared on Thursday after US President Joe Biden said the United States was discussing with Israel possible strikes on Iranian oil facilities. | WTI, the US contract, rose by as much as five percent before paring back some gains to sit at around $73 per barrel while Brent, the international benchmark, rose around four percent to $76.81. Biden told reporters at the White House however that he was not expecting Israel to launch any retaliation for Tehran's missile barrage on Israel before Thursday at least. When asked by a reporter if he supported Israel striking Iran's oil facilities, Biden said "we're discussing that. I think that would be a little... anyway." ● A rise in oil prices could be hugely damaging for Biden's Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democrat confronts Republican former president Donald Trump in a November 5 election where the cost of living is a major issue. Biden said he did not expect any immediate action from Israel -- even if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has recently paid little heed to calls for restraint as he targets the Iran-allied Hezbollah militia in Lebanon.

■ Bank of England issues oil price shock warning (RT.com)
■ Biden’s Israel Policy Has Led Us to the Brink of War on Iran (Medea Benjamin)

Reports are flooding-in that "unknown aircraft" have attacked Russia's Hmeimim Airbase in Latakia / Tartus Syria. The battle is ongoing for the past 55 minutes. | Not only did "unknown aircraft" hit a warehouse on the base where an Iranian Plane had just been unloaded, reports also indicate "salvos of ship-launched missiles began hitting the Russian base launched by ships in the Mediterranean Sea." To my knowledge, only the United States and NATO have naval vessels in that part of the Mediterranean. Info is coming in fast, but if the air strikes were carried out by Israel, and the naval missiles by the US, NATO, then World War 3 has just begun.

■ Israel Attacks Russian Airbase in Syria (Hal Turner Show)
■ Massive explosions reported in the vicinity of Hmeimim Air Base (Albawaba)
■ Israel bears all blame for Middle East escalation — Russia’s UN envoy (TASS)

Iran will consider any state that provides its airspace to Israel as an enemy, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said. | Iranian top diplomat expressed hope that "no one will give such permission".

💬 "More than 90% of our missiles reached their targets and were not intercepted. We have already told representatives of other countries that we will consider [an enemy] anyone who provides their airspace to Israel. But I hope that no one will give such permission," Iranian news agency SNN quoted Araghchi as saying.

On Monday, Israel announced the start of a "limited" military ground operation in southern Lebanon, reportedly with no plans to permanently occupy any areas of the country. Since last week, the Israeli Air Force has been carrying out massive strikes against Lebanese Shia movement Hezbollah targets in various parts of the neighboring state. Several targeted airstrikes on Beirut have also been made, killing high-ranking Hezbollah commanders.

■ Iran warns of ‘unconventional response’ in case of new Israeli attack (Al Jazeera)
■ Video: Netanyahu 'running for his life amid Iranian missile attack', here's the truth (Albawaba)
■ Satellite images show damage to Nevatim base from Iranian missiles: AP (Al Mayadeen)
■ Dozens of Israeli officers and soldiers reported killed or wounded in clashes with Hezbollah on Lebanon (Albawaba)(October 2nd, 2024)

An Israeli airstrike targeted a center of the Islamic Health Society in Lebanon's capital Beirut early on Thursday, Al Mayadeen's correspondent reported. | An Israeli airstrike targeted a center of the Islamic Health Society in Lebanon's capital Beirut early on Thursday, Al Mayadeen's correspondent reported. According to the Lebanese TV network's correspondent, several casualties were reported in the Israeli strike on Beirut. ● Later the Ministry of Health said that according to an initial toll, two people were martyred and 11 others were injured in the strike, which struck a building in the Bachoura neighborhood. Three of the casualties were critically injured and succumbed to their wounds later on Thursday, raising the death toll to five. ● Lebanon's National News Agency (NNA) reported that the strike utilized internationally banned white phosphorus bombs on the targeted residential building. ● The strike marks a rare occurrence in the ongoing aggression on Lebanon, as only one other airstrike targeted a building near the Cola Station in the capital. Most Israeli airstrikes have struck and destroyed residential areas in the Southern Suburb of Beirut, which falls under the Mount Lebanon governorate.

The platform has been cooperating with authorities in criminal cases since 2018, its co-founder and chief has revealed | Telegram CEO Pavel Durov revealed on Wednesday that the messenger service has been complying with privacy policies in several countries and has been disclosing information about criminals to authorities for the past six years. ● The Russian tech billionaire has remained unable to leave France after he was arrested in Paris in late August and charged with multiple offenses, such as operating a platform used for organized crime and refusing to cooperate with French authorities. ● Last month, Durov, who is also a co-founder of the company, announced an update to the platform’s Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, which he said would make it clear that IP addresses and phone numbers of those who violate the messenger’s rules “can be disclosed to relevant authorities in response to valid legal requests.”

Jonathan Cook | Western publics are being subjected to an unprecedented campaign of media propaganda to conceal Israel’s true goals as it expands the slaughter [...] Words like “audacious”, “escalation” and “targets” have become tools to conceal meaning, not to illuminate – and for good reason. Because Israel’s actions are so obviously criminal, so obviously horrifying, so obviously genocidal. Language becomes a weapon to hide the truth. ■ The media chorus goes like this: Israel is attacking Lebanon to stop Hezbollah rocket fire and allow the residents of Israel’s most northerly communities to return home. Or in the blunter, Orwellian language of Israeli officials framing this horror show: Israel must “escalate to de-escalate”. ■ Lebanese civilians are paying the heaviest price: some 550 of them were killed in the first day of Israel’s bombing campaign alone. Many tens of thousands have been driven – ethnically cleansed – from the territory of south Lebanon.