We are surrounded by a ring of fire, says Israeli ambassador

BBC- Israel’s ambassador to the UK, Tzipi Hotovely, says her country has been in a “different place” since Hamas’s attacks on 7 October last year.

Speaking to our colleagues on Radio 4’s Today programme, she describes the attacks as a “watershed moment” that has left many struggling with long-term trauma.

“Our hearts are still bleeding,” she says.

“This thing happened because we were surrounded by this ring of fire created by Iran that wanted to create proxies that can attack Israel simultaneously, from the north, from Hezbollah, from the east, from the south, from Hamas.”

In a new statement to mark a year since the 7 October Hamas attacks, Hezbollah says it is “confident” in its ability to “repel the [Israeli] aggression”, and has vowed to continue fighting.

The Lebanon-based armed group is allied with Hamas, and both are backed and funded by Iran.

Hezbollah describes the events of 7 October as “heroic”, saying they will have “historic” effects in the region.

There “is no place” for Israel there, it says, and it “must be removed, no matter how long it takes”.

Hezbollah also blames “the US and its allies” for the violence in Gaza and Lebanon that followed Hamas’s 7 October attack, saying they “bear full responsibility”.