Hezbollah chief to break silence on crisis

Lebanon's Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah on Friday will break weeks of silence since war broke out between Hamas and Israel, in a speech that could impact the region as the Gaza conflict rages.

Nasrallah's highly anticipated speech will be broadcast as part of an event in Beirut's southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold, at 3pm (1pm GMT) on Friday, in memory of fighters killed in Israeli bombardments.

On the Lebanese side, more than 70 people have been killed – at least 50 of them Hezbollah fighters but also other combatants and civilians, one a Reuters journalist, according to an AFP tally.

On the Israeli side, nine people have died – eight soldiers and one civilian, the army says.