West Asia Latest: 40 Killed In East Lebanon; Israel Passes Deportation Law

As West Asia continues to be a hotspot of violence, intense Israeli strikes on Wednesday killed at least 40 people and over 50 were injured in eastern Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley and Baalbek city.

Central and northern Gaza also continued to bear the brunt of Israeli attacks in the past 24 hours, with a strike on a house in northern Beit Lahiya killing at least 15 people. Meanwhile, Egypt has joined Turkey's call, backed by dozens of countries, urging the UN to halt arms deliveries to Israel

Since October 7, 2023, Israel’s war on Gaza has killed at least 43,391 Palestinians and injured 102,347. In Lebanon, at least 3,050 people have been killed and 13,658 wounded in Israeli attacks since the war began.

Here are the latest updates from West Asia:

• Israeli Parliament Passes Deportation Law: Israel's parliament, the Knesset, has passed a law allowing the government to deport relatives of individuals deemed "terrorists," even if they are Israeli citizens to the war-ravaged Gaza Strip or other locations. The law, sponsored by Hanoch Milwidsky, grants the interior minister the power to deport first-degree relatives who knew about or supported an attack.

• UN Warns Of ‘Critical Point’ In Lebanon War: The United Nations reported that Israel's attacks on Lebanon have displaced almost 873,000 people, mostly women. "The ongoing conflict in Lebanon has reached a critical point, with over 3,000 deaths recorded since 8 October 2023 – 58 percent more than the 1,900 fatalities during the 2006 conflict," the UN added.

  "Additionally, an estimated 1.3 million people have been displaced, both within Lebanon and into neighbouring countries, 33 percent more than the number of people displaced in 2006."

• Hezbollah Targets Tel Aviv Army Base: Hezbollah has launched a swarm of drones at an Israeli military base south of Tel Aviv, marking the first such attack. This comes as Israel launched renewed air strikes on Beirut's southern suburbs. There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage to infrastructure from Israeli authorities.

• Lebanon Files Complaint Against Israel At UN: Lebanon has filed a complaint with the United Nations' International Labour Organization (ILO) over deadly pager attacks in September. Labour Minister Mustafa Bayram described the attacks as an "egregious war against humanity" and warned of a dangerous precedent if not condemned.

• Iran's Currency Hits All-Time Low As Trump Wins: Iran's currency, the rial, hit an all-time low on Wednesday following Donald Trump's US presidential win. The rial traded at 703,000 to the dollar, according to Tehran traders. In 2015, at the time of Iran's nuclear deal with world powers, the rial was at 32,000 to USD 1. Trump unilaterally withdrew America from the accord in 2018, sparking years of tensions between the countries that persist today. Iran's economy has struggled for years under crippling international sanctions over its rapidly advancing nuclear program, which now enriches uranium at near weapons-grade levels.