Turkey on Thursday accused Israel of seeking to expand the war in Gaza to Lebanon with the “alarming” wave of deadly explosions that swept through Hezbollah strongholds.

“The escalation in the region is alarming,” Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on state-run TRT television. “We see Israel mounting its attacks towards Lebanon step by step.”

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The blasts have killed 32 people in two days, including two children, wounding more than 3,000 others, according to Lebanese health ministry figures.

Israel has not commented on the unprecedented operation in which Hezbollah operatives’ walkie-talkies and pagers exploded in supermarkets, at funerals and on streets.

But its defence minister Yoav Gallant, referring to Israel’s border with Lebanon, said Wednesday: “The centre of gravity is moving northward.”

Turkey blamed Israel for the blasts.

“We have come to a point where these operations carried out by Israel have become increasingly provocative, and in return, Iran, Hezbollah and elements close to them have no choice but respond,” Fidan said.

Hezbollah is an ally of the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which has been fighting a war in Gaza since its October 7 attack on Israel.

For nearly a year, the focus of Israel’s firepower has been on Gaza, which is ruled by Hamas.

But its troops have also been engaged in near-daily clashes with Hezbollah militants along its northern border, killing hundreds in Lebanon, most of them fighters, and dozens more in Israel.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday called Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati to offer his condolences over the wave of deadly blasts.

Erdogan is a vocal critic of Israel’s offensive in Gaza.

Courtesy – AFP

The US presidential race remains highly competitive according to polls released on Sunday, just two days before Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are set to face off in their first—and potentially only—televised debate.

The latest polls indicate that Trump maintains strong support from about half of the voters, despite his status as a convicted felon and his involvement in efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss to Joe Biden.

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Harris, who entered the race in July after President Biden’s unexpected withdrawal, has quickly shifted from being a relatively unnoticed vice president to a formidable candidate.

However, the polls suggest that she has yet to make significant gains, leaving the race too close to call.

A New York Times/Siena poll shows that 78-year-old Trump holds a narrow national lead over Harris, 48% to 47%, which falls within the margin of error.

US presidential elections are determined by state-by-state results rather than the overall national popular vote, making a few key swing.

The poll reveals that Harris, 59, holds a slight lead in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, while remaining tied with Trump in four other key swing states: Nevada, Georgia, North Carolina, and Arizona.

A separate CBS News/YouGov poll also finds Harris ahead by one point in Michigan and Wisconsin and even with Trump in Pennsylvania.

The election landscape has been turbulent, with 81-year-old Biden exiting the race due to concerns over his age, Trump narrowly escaping an assassination attempt at a rally, and rising fears that he might again refuse to concede if defeated in November.

Nevertheless, the latest figures show that both candidates have managed to maintain a steady base of support, leaving the nation nearly evenly divided.

Tuesday’s ABC News debate, the only one scheduled between Harris and Trump, could prove to be a critical moment.

Trump will likely face scrutiny to tone down his typical rhetoric as he goes head-to-head with Harris, who is striving to become the first female president in US history.

Harris will need to capitalize on the large audience during the debate to connect with Americans in a way she struggled to do as vice president and has had limited opportunity to achieve during her accelerated campaign.

With Trump now the oldest presidential nominee in US history, Harris is presenting an optimistic, future-focused vision, in stark contrast to Trump’s dire warnings that the country is headed for ruin without his leadership.

At the same time, Harris faces the challenge of debating Trump, who frequently makes false statements and thrives on provoking his opponents.

During his sole debate with Trump before exiting the race, Biden struggled to effectively counter Trump’s tactics.

Trump has already targeted Harris with racist and sexist remarks in his speeches, intentionally mispronouncing her name and labeling her as “crazy” and a “Marxist.”

A gunman was shot dead by German police on Thursday after opening fire near Munich’s Nazi-era documentation center and the Israeli consulate, the Bavarian Interior Ministry confirmed.

The state’s interior minister, Joachim Herrmann, reported that the suspect, armed with a rifle, fired multiple shots before police responded with deadly force.

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The gunman succumbed to his injuries shortly after.

Authorities have not yet released further details on the incident or the gunman’s identity as investigation is underway.

More to follow………..