Palestinian President Abbas to visit Russia August 12-14, RIA reports

BEIRUT: The World Health Organization delivered 32 tons of emergency medical supplies to Lebanon on Monday amid growing fears of an all-out war between Israel and Hezbollah.

The aid, which will equip Lebanon's most under-equipped hospitals, included at least 1,000 trauma kits to treat any war casualties. “The aim is to get these supplies and medicines to the hospitals… especially the most exposed places so that we are ready to deal with any emergency,” Health Minister Firass Abiad said.

The departure hall of Beirut airport was full of families fleeing the country on Monday after countries including Saudi Arabia, France, Britain, Italy and Turkey called on their citizens to leave. “It is very sad, oh God, the situation is really sad. We're getting out of a crisis, we're going into another,” said Sherin Malah, who lives in Italy and decided to return home soon after visiting her mother in Lebanon.

Germany is preparing to move its citizens to safety and has prepared transport planes to take them from Beirut to Cyprus. The US urged Americans in Lebanon “to book any available flight”, the UN asked the families of its staff to leave, and the Swedish embassy moved its operations to Cyprus.

Tensions have risen since Israel killed senior Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut and Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran hours later last week. Iran said on Monday: “Nobody has the right to question Iran's legal right to punish the Zionist regime.” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel was “determined to stand up to Iran… on all fronts.”

Meanwhile, Hezbollah and Israel continued to engage in almost daily firefights. Four people were killed in Israeli airstrikes on the Lebanese border towns of Mays Al-Jabal and Hula, and Hezbollah hit military targets in northern Israel with explosive drones.

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