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Middle East conflict

Residents of Israeli settlements can not be considered civilians — Iran's supreme leader

Border areas in the south of Israel were most affected as a result of the Hamas attack

DUBAI, October 17. /TASS/. Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei said on Tuesday that the Israelis who were killed or wounded in Israeli settlements as a result of the attack by Hamas militants could not be considered civilians.

"The people who live in Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories are not civilians because most of them have weapons," the IRNA news agency reported him as saying.

Tensions flared up in the Middle East after Hamas militants from the Gaza Strip attacked Israeli territory. Hamas views its attack as a response to Israeli authorities’ steps against the Al-Aqsa Mosque on Jerusalem’s Temple Mount. Israel declared a total blockade of the Gaza Strip and launched bombardments of the enclave and some areas in Lebanon and Syria. Clashes are also reported in the West Bank.

Border areas in the south of Israel were most affected as a result of the Hamas attack. Palestinian radicals attacked a music festival near Kibbutz Re’im, killing hundreds of people. Kibbutz Kfar Aza and Kibbutz Be’eri were also attacked by Hamas militants. Volunteers recovered at least a hundred bodies in Be’eri.

According to the latest data, more than 2,800 Palestinians have been killed and around 11,200 others injured. In Israel, at least 1,500 people have lost their lives and almost 4,200 have been wounded.

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Middle East conflict

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Top stories from the Russian press on Tuesday, November 26th

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