Latest on the war between Israel and Hamas: According to Lebanese media, two people were killed in an Israeli attack in southern Lebanon | WDHN

People light candles in memory of the children and teenagers killed in a rocket attack on a soccer field in the village of Majdal Shams in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights, Sunday, July 28, 2024. At least 12 children and teenagers were killed in a rocket attack on a soccer field in the village, marking the deadliest attack on an Israeli target on the country’s northern border since fighting began between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Two people were killed and three others injured in Israeli attacks in southern Lebanon early Monday, the Lebanese state news agency reported.

The report came as Israel ponders its response to a rocket attack from Lebanon over the weekend that killed 12 children and teenagers in a town in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights. Monday’s attacks did not appear to be Israel’s response to the deadly weekend attack, but rather routine fighting.

Lebanese state media reported that a motorcycle was hit near the Lebanese-Israeli border in an attack on Monday morning, killing two motorcyclists and injuring a child.

Further information about deaths or injuries was not immediately available.

Also on Monday, two people were injured in a separate attack in southern Lebanon, Lebanese state media reported.

Israeli military officials said only that the military had carried out attacks on Hezbollah members and infrastructure, but provided no further information.

Violence has been breaking out along the border between Israeli troops and Hezbollah since October 8. The Israeli military says the attack on Majdal Shams over the weekend was the deadliest attack on civilians since October 7, raising fears of a wider regional war.

Here is the latest information:

Egyptian and Hamas officials say there are still hurdles in ceasefire negotiations

CAIRO – Egyptian and Hamas officials said Monday that mediators negotiating a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip are still working to resolve sticking points.

The officials with direct knowledge of the negotiations said the points of contention include Israel’s demand to maintain a presence on a strip of land on the Gaza-Egypt border, known as the Philadelphia Corridor, as well as along a highway dividing southern and northern Gaza.

Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media about these sensitive discussions.

They said Israel refused to leave the area between Egypt and Gaza during the ceasefire. They said Israel had linked the withdrawal of its troops from the border corridor to the installation of underground sensors and an underground wall to monitor future attempts by Hamas to build tunnels or smuggle weapons. Officials in Israel did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Israel claims that Hamas uses the tunnels that run beneath the corridor to smuggle weapons, but Egypt denies this allegation and says it destroyed many of the tunnels in a previous operation.

In early May, the Israeli military took control of the Philadelphia Corridor and the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza as it began the invasion of Gaza’s southernmost city, Rafah.

The Egyptian official said no agreement had yet been reached on the corridor and the reopening of Rafah, adding that direct negotiations between Egypt and Israel were continuing to seek a compromise.

The Hamas official, meanwhile, rejected Israel’s demands, including a request to station Israeli troops along the highway that divides the Gaza Strip in half. The aim of the deployment is to check Palestinians returning to their homes in the north of the Gaza Strip and root out any militants.

The Hamas official said the group would submit its written response to Qatar and Egypt in the next few days.

Both politicians said Hamas still wanted “written guarantees” from the mediators that negotiations would continue during the first phase of the ceasefire in order to achieve a permanent ceasefire.

CIA Director William Burns, Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed Bin Abdul Rahman al-Thani and Egyptian intelligence chief Abbas Kamel met with Mossad chief David Barnea in Rome on Sunday to discuss Israel’s latest demands.

—Samy Magdy

Israel considers response to Hezbollah after rocket from Lebanon kills 12 teenagers on soccer field

TEL AVIV, Israel — The Middle East is bracing for a possible outbreak of violence after Israeli authorities said a rocket fired from Lebanon hit a soccer field in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, killing 12 children and teenagers. The military called the attack the deadliest on civilians since Oct. 7.

Saturday’s attack raised fears of a broader regional war between Israel and Hezbollah, which in a rare move denied responsibility for the attack.

The White House National Security Council said it was in talks with its Israeli and Lebanese counterparts and working on a diplomatic solution to “end all attacks in the border area between Israel and Lebanon once and for all.”

The Israeli military said it struck several targets in Lebanon on Sunday night, with the intensity of the attacks comparable to months of cross-border fighting between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah. Hezbollah said it also carried out attacks. There were no immediate reports of casualties.