Mormon faith pushes ahead with global temple building boom despite cool reception in Las Vegas

LAS VEGAS (AP) — A historic building boom of big, bright Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints temples — beacons to the faithful with steeples pointing heavenward around the world — is meeting resistance in some parts of the U.S., including one place not really known for moderation.

In Las Vegas, just a 30-minute drive from glittery casinos, homeowners in a rural foothills neighborhood complain the size and lighting of a temple that won city approval will forever change the dark-sky environment. Some say they feel trampled, and that church and city officials rushed to approve the project.

“I feel like it soured people’s taste, to see how they steamrolled the neighborhood,” said Matthew DeLoe, a homeowner who was active against the temple for months.

Most temples built by the faith have been well received, but the Las Vegas fight mirrors objections over construction plans in Texas, Wyoming and even the religion's home state of Utah. The battles are forcing the faith known widely as the Mormon church to explain to non-members why the lavish temples are so vital to their beliefs.

Temples draw the faithful closer to God, they say. They are places for the most sacred ceremonies, such as weddings that seal couples for eternity and baptisms to bring deceased family members or others into the fold. Officials insist they consult with locals and carefully design temples for each environment.

“Our goal is to give more members access to these very precious places that are sacred to us and our religion,” said Presiding Bishop Gérald Caussé, a high-ranking official whose duties include overseeing worldwide temple building, during an interview with The Associated Press in Utah in June.

Temples are separate from the church's 20,000 worldwide meetinghouses where anyone is welcome and members gather for Sunday services. At temples, only devout members who follow church rules are allowed inside.

Thousands of supporters and vocal opponents packed planning meetings for months before the Las Vegas City Council unanimously approved a three-story temple in July. Larger in size than the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, it's set to have a golden steeple soaring nearly 200 feet (61 meters).

Some want to sue to stop the project. They insist their concerns have nothing to do with the religious teachings of a sometimes misunderstood faith, which is known for its belief in eternal families, tight-knit congregations and bans on alcohol, coffee, gambling and same-sex relationships.

“I don’t have a problem with the church being there, and none of the neighbors have a problem with the church being there,” said Sue Kristensen, of the Nevada Rural Preservation Alliance. “The size of the building is the problem. It’s blocking everyone’s views of beautiful Lone Mountain. Monstrosity is the best word that I can think of.”

Church officials have another description for the more than 300 temples built in recent years. “They are clean, and beautiful, and quiet, as are the people who will frequent these sacred spaces,” said church spokesman Doug Andersen.

New temple projects could be announced at this weekend’s twice-a-year church conference, where congregants of the 17.2-million-member faith gather in person in Salt Lake City or watch online for guidance and church news.

What the faithful won’t hear is how much the elaborately built and lavishly furnished temples cost. The church declines to disclose construction figures, but its investment arm has a portfolio worth nearly $55 billion, according to its most recent U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission disclosures.

The SEC fined the church and its money management arm $5 million in February 2023 for using shell companies to obscure the size of church financial holdings. Scrutiny focused on whether the tax-exempt faith sits atop a treasure trove of wealth. The government noted the church was concerned that disclosure of its portfolio would lead to unspecified “negative consequences.”

The temple-building push went into hyperdrive after President Russell M. Nelson became head of the church in January 2018. About half of new temples have been built since then. Nelson, who turned 100 in September, named 15 new temple locations during a conference last April, to bring the total that are announced, open or under construction to 350.

It is the biggest building boom in the history of the faith, said Matt Martinich, a researcher and church member who tracks the growth of the global religion. Construction accelerated after 1980, from 19 temples worldwide to 122 by 2005. The 150th temple opened in Provo, Utah, in 2016. The church says five are due to open before the end of 2024 in Honduras; Brazil; Tooele, Utah; Casper, Wyoming; and Tallahassee, Florida.

Just north of Pittsburgh, the non-member public had a rare opportunity in August to tour a temple, the 196th to be completed. Crystal chandeliers, woodwork and framed paintings of idealized biblical scenes adorned the interior.

The Las Vegas temple site is a large undeveloped lot surrounded by single-family homes, schools and parks. At sunset, it’s enveloped by the shadow of a rocky natural landmark, Lone Mountain.

Residents note that streetlights and sidewalks are scarce, homes draw water from wells and neighbors ride horses on the dirt shoulders of roads. They worry the temple will bring light pollution, noise and traffic.

It will be Las Vegas’ second temple. The first opened in 1989 about a 30-minute drive across the city.

Bud Stoddard, a regional church leader in the area, said the palatial structure is intended “to be something that when we see it, our minds, our eyes, are immediately drawn heavenward.” He predicted it will be a beacon for the 100,000 church faithful in and around Las Vegas.

“What I believe is that five years from now, this area will be more beautiful, more desirable,” Stoddard said at the site. “This will guarantee a place of quiet, a place of solitude.”

Far from Sin City, a court fight may also loom in the Texas town of Fairview. Mayor Henry Lessner said church representatives promised legal action after the town council last month unanimously rejected plans for a temple that would be among the largest buildings in a community of 11,000 residents. At 154 feet (47 meters), the spire would be taller than the town’s two water towers.

Church officials may argue that not being able to have tall steeples infringes on their right to worship. They point to the federal Religious Land Use And Institutionalized Persons Act that since 2000 has banned the use of zoning and landmarking laws to discriminate against “religious assemblies or institutions.”

Lessner predicted that his town on the edge of the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area might end up as a test case for religious architectural freedom.

“We want to be good neighbors,” Lessner said. “But our community will not be bullied. ‘Don’t Mess with Texas’ includes Fairview.”

In Las Vegas, the temple's outdoor lighting plan was modified and the steeple height was lowered 20 feet (6 meters), before winning City Council approval.

Caussé said the church is willing to make adjustments that are reasonable and do not change the “spiritual value or nature” of the temple.

“It is so important to us to be considered as good neighbors, because a temple is not about contention," he said. ”It has to create connection between people and with the community to be well received.”

Schoenbaum reported from Provo, Utah. Associated Press journalists Peter Smith in Cranberry, Pennsylvania.; Ty O’Neil in Las Vegas; Rick Bowmer in Provo, Utah; Susan Montoya Bryan in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Sam Metz in Rabat, Morocco, contributed to this report.

A view of the ongoing Temple Square renovation project, showing the Salt Lake Temple enveloped in scaffolding, is seen on June 17, 2024, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

A view of the ongoing Temple Square renovation project, showing the Salt Lake Temple enveloped in scaffolding, is seen on June 17, 2024, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

A view of the ongoing Temple Square renovation project, showing one of the north pavilions, is seen on June 4, 2024, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints wait to speak during a planning commission meeting at Las Vegas City Hall, May 14, 2024, as officials consider the church's plans to build a new temple near Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Presiding Bishop Gérald Caussé, the church's head of worldwide temple building, looks on during an interview June 21, 2024, in Provo, Utah. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

A view of the ongoing Temple Square renovation project, showing the Salt Lake Temple enveloped in scaffolding, is seen on June 17, 2024, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

The angel Moroni statue sits atop the Salt Lake Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at Temple Square during an ongoing renovation project June 17, 2024, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

Bud Stoddard, a regional church leader, poses for a photograph at a site near Las Vegas, where The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints plans to build a new temple, May 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)

The new Pittsburgh Pennsylvania Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is seen on Aug. 12, 2024, in Cranberry, Pa. (AP Photo/Peter Smith)

A view of the ongoing Temple Square renovation project, showing the Salt Lake Temple enveloped in scaffolding, is seen on June 4, 2024, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

A construction fence secures the site where The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints plans to build a new temple near Las Vegas, Sept. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Presiding Bishop Gérald Caussé, the church's head of worldwide temple building, looks on during an interview June 21, 2024, in Provo, Utah. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

The sun sets over the site where The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints plans to build a new temple near Las Vegas, May 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)

Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints sing outside Las Vegas City Hall as officials consider the church's plans to build a new temple near Las Vegas, May 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)

Bud Stoddard, a regional church leader, holds a rendering of the temple planned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at a site near Las Vegas, May 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)

The United Nations Security Council held an emergency meeting Wednesday to address the spiraling conflict in the Middle East.

Iran’s ambassador to the U.N. said his country launched nearly 200 missiles at Israel on Tuesday as a deterrent to further Israeli violence, while his Israeli counterpart called the barrage an “unprecedented act of aggression.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed late Tuesday to retaliate, and an Iranian commander threatened wider strikes on infrastructure if Israel did so. U.S. President Biden said Wednesday that he would not support an Israeli attack targeting Iran’s nuclear program.

Israel further ruffled feathers Wednesday when its foreign minister declared the U.N. secretary-general “persona non-grata” in the country, doubling down on decades of accusations of antisemitism against the organization.

Israel was meanwhile battling militants on two fronts, pursuing a ground incursion into Lebanon against Hezbollah and conducting strikes in Gaza that killed dozens, including children. The Israeli military said eight soldiers have died in the conflict in southern Lebanon.

Israel and Hezbollah have traded fire across the Lebanon border almost daily since the day after Hamas’ cross-border attack on Oct. 7, 2023, which killed 1,200 Israelis and took 250 others hostage. Israel declared war on the militant group in the Gaza Strip in response. More than 41,000 Palestinians have been killed in the territory, and just over half the dead have been women and children, according to local health officials.

Here is the latest:

SYDNEY Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said on Thursday her government had booked 500 seats on commercial aircraft for Australian citizens, permanent residents and their families to leave Lebanon on Saturday.

The seats are available to 1,700 Australians and their families known to be in Lebanon on two flights from Beirut to Cyprus, Wong said.

“What I would say to Australians who wish to leave, please take whatever option is available to you,” Wong told reporters in Geelong, Australia.

“Please do not wait for your preferred route,” she added.

BEIRUT — Lebanon's Health Ministry raised the death toll to six from an Israeli airstrike on an apartment building near the center of Beirut late Wednesday night. It said seven people were injured in the attack.

The airstrike hit near the residential Bashoura district. The previous death toll had been two with 11 people injured.

Residents reported a sulfur-like smell following the attack, and Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency accused Israel of using internationally banned phosphorous bombs. Human rights groups have in the past accused Israel of using white phosphorus incendiary shells on towns and villages in conflict-hit southern Lebanon.

BEIRUT — At least two people have been killed in an Israeli airstrike on an apartment building in the Lebanese capital, Lebanon's Health Ministry says.

A further 11 people were wounded in the attack in Beirut late Wednesday, the ministry says.

The airstrike started a fire in an apartment in a multistory building in the residential Bashoura district, not far from the United Nations headquarters, the prime minister’s office and parliament. Ambulances rushed to the scene.

Hezbollah’s Al-Manar TV station says the strike targeted a center of the group’s health unit.

There was no warning issued ahead of the strike.

UNITED NATIONS – Israel’s U.N. ambassador said Wednesday that the “the time for empty calls for de-escalation is over.”

Danny Danon told an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council that “Iran’s true face is one of terror, death and chaos.”

“This is no longer a matter of words,” he said. “Iran is a very real and present danger to the world, and if they are not stopped, the next wave of missiles will not be aimed solely at Israel,” he said.

He called Iran’s missile barrage aimed at Israel on Tuesday “a cold-blooded attack against 10 million civilians” and “an unprecedented act of aggression.”

Danon stressed that Israel will not stop until all of the hostages taken by Hamas and other militants are back in Israel.

“Let the world understand: Israel will defend itself, and we will do so with justice and strength,” he said.

UNITED NATIONS – Iran’s U.N. ambassador says Iran had to launch a barrage of missiles at Israel to “restore balance” after escalating Israeli violence in the region.

Amir Saeid Iravani told an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday that the missile attack Tuesday was “a necessary and proportionate response to Israel’s continued terrorist aggressive acts over the past two months.”

He says Iran has “consistently pursued peace and stability” and that Israel sees Iranian restraint “not as a gesture of goodwill but as a weakness to exploit.”

“Each act of restraint taken by Iran has only emboldened Israel to commit greater crimes and more acts of aggression,” Iravani said. “Consequently, Iran’s response was necessary to restore balance and deterrence.”

He also accused the United States of complicity “in Israel’s crimes” by helping to arm the nation after the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas in southern Israel.

WASHINGTON — Satellite images of an aircraft hangar at a key Israeli military air base taken after a massive barrage of Iranian missiles appear to show a large hole in the roof.

Images of the Nevatim air base in southern Israel on Wednesday show the damage to the roof in a row of buildings near the main runway. Large pieces of debris can be seen spread around the building.

It was not clear what caused the damage. Israel’s military did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the satellite images.

Nevatim is home to the Israeli Air Force’s most advanced aircraft, including U.S.-produced F-35 Lightning II stealth fighter jets. It is not clear from the satellite imagery whether any aircraft were in the hangar when it was struck.

Nevatim also sustained light damage during an Iranian missile and drone attack in April.

UNITED NATIONS – Lebanon’s U.N. ambassador says his government rejects the war between Israel and Hezbollah militants in the country.

Hadi Hachem told an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council Wednesday that the government wants the enforcement of a U.N. Security Council resolution that was supposed to end the last Israel-Hezbollah war in 2006. It called for all armed groups, including Hezbollah, to be disarmed and the deployment of Lebanese forces to the southern border with Israel. None of this has happened.

The Lebanese ambassador said fully implementing the resolution is the only solution to the ongoing war and Israel’s “barbaric aggression.” He said Lebanon is opening enlistment for 1,500 new soldiers to strengthen the national army’s presence in the south.

“Lebanon today is stuck between the Israeli destruction machine and the ambitions of others in the region,” Hachem said, alluding to Iran’s support for Hezbollah.

WASHINGTON — The State Department says about 100 American citizens and family members have left Lebanon on a flight contracted with a commercial airline.

Department spokesman Matthew Miller said Wednesday that the flight to Istanbul was not a charter flight but also was not on the Lebanese national carrier Middle East Airlines, which is the only commercial airline flying scheduled flights in and out of Beirut.

Since Sept. 28, MEA has made about 800 seats on its flights out of Beirut available for American citizens, but Miller could not say how many had taken those MEA flights.

He said some 6,000 American citizens have now asked for information from the U.S. Embassy in Beirut on how they might be able to leave the country, although only a small fraction of those have asked for actual assistance.

QUSAIR, Syria — Thousands of Syrians and Lebanese continue to pour into Syria to escape Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon.

On Wednesday, an Associated Press team saw hundreds crowding the Jousieh border crossing, one of several points of entry into Syria. The crossing is around 30 kilometers (18 miles) from Syria’s central city of Homs, where many said they were headed.

Most of those waiting to enter Syria were from eastern Lebanon’s city of Baalbek and surrounding areas, which have been hard hit by Israeli airstrikes in recent days. The militant group Hezbollah has a strong presence in that region, but many of those killed and wounded have been civilians.

Some came from as far as the southern suburbs of Beirut.

Ola Hallaq, her husband and two kids were among those waiting to be processed. Originally from Homs, she fled Syria at the start of the civil war in 2011 and settled in Baalbek. Now, as Israel pounds eastern Lebanon, the family is returning home despite the uncertainty and lack of income.

“I’m returning to my country because of the war … there was so much destruction all around,” she said.

Dabbah Mashaal, an official at the crossing, said 10,000 displaced Syrians and 7,700 Lebanese have crossed the border in recent days.

UNITED NATIONS — The United Nations says Israel’s ban on Secretary-General Antonio Guterres entering the country is a “political statement.”

U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told reporters Wednesday that Foreign Minister Israel Katz saying Guterres is “persona non grata” is “one more attack on the United Nations staff that we’ve seen from the government of Israel.”

Katz accuses Guterres of being biased against Israel, and says he never condemned Hamas’ Oct. 7 attacks on southern Israel. Israel also claims staff from the U.N. aid agency helping Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, are Hamas members who participated in the Oct. 7 attacks.

Dujarric countered that Guterres has repeatedly condemned the Hamas attacks and sexual violence, and stressed that the U.N. still engages with Israel “at the operational level and other levels.”

JOINT BASE ANDREWS, Md. — President Joe Biden says he will not support an Israeli attack on sites related to Tehran’s nuclear program.

“The answer is no,” Biden said Wednesday, when asked if he would support such retaliation after Iran fired about 180 missiles at Israel on Tuesday.

Biden’s comments came after he and fellow Group of Seven leaders spoke by phone on Wednesday to discuss coordinating new sanctions against Iran.

The White House said in a statement that the G7 leaders “unequivocally condemned Iran’s attack against Israel” and Biden reiterated the United States’ “full solidarity and support to Israel and its people.”

All the while, the administration has signaled that it’s urging that Israel display restraint in how it responds to Tuesday’s missile attack, which Biden said was “ineffective and defeated.”

CAIRO — Hamas’ military wing has claimed responsibility for a mass shooting in Tel Aviv that left seven people dead and wounded 16 more.

It said the two attackers, Mohammed Mesek and Ahmed Himouni, were its militants who hailed from the southern West Bank city of Hebron.

Israeli police said the two opened fire Tuesday evening in the Jaffa neighborhood of Tel Aviv, including shooting directly into a light rail carriage crowded with passengers that was stopped at a station. Police said the pair were shot and killed by security guards and armed pedestrians.

The attack came moments before Iran launched a massive barrage of rockets towards Israel, sending people into bomb shelters across the country.

It remains unclear how the two men entered Israel from the West Bank. Hamas, which has ruled Gaza since 2007, is active in various cities and refugee camps in the West Bank.

On Wednesday, locals left flowers and candles at the train stop, where bullet holes peppered the signs and benches.

Maya Brandwine said she was at a coffee shop on the street when the shooting broke out. During the subsequent Iranian missile attack, she took cover in a bomb shelter as police swept for suspects.

“It’s a nightmare, and we’re starting to get used to it,” she said, blaming the policies of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir for the violence.

DAMASCUS — An Israeli airstrike hit a residential building in the Mezzeh area of Damascus Wednesday evening, killing three people and wounding at least three more, Syria’s state-run SANA news agency reported.

An Associated Press journalist at the scene says the missile appeared to have targeted the bottom floor of a four-story apartment building.

There has been no comment from Israel, which frequently strikes targets linked to Iran or allied groups in Syria but rarely claims responsibility.

The strike comes amid a multi-front escalation in the ongoing war in the Middle East. Israel has launched a heavy aerial bombardment and what it describes as a limited ground incursion in Lebanon. It says that incursion aims to push the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah back from the border after nearly a year of low-level clashes.

On Tuesday, Iran fired a barrage of ballistic missiles into Israel, which it said was in retaliation for attacks that killed the leaders of Hezbollah and Hamas — both backed by Iran — in Beirut and Tehran.

ISLAMABAD — Pakistan has expressed its deep concern over “escalating hostilities” in the Middle East, urging all parties to prioritize peace.

The carefully worded remarks by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Wednesday come after Iran launched at least 180 missiles into Israel. Pakistan shares a long border with Iran and has no diplomatic ties with Israel.

In a statement, the ministry says Israel has “increasingly acted in violation of international law and the UN Charter, resulting in grave humanitarian crisis.” It said “Israel has endangered regional peace and security with the ongoing genocide in Gaza”.

It says Israel’s recent invasion of Lebanon has further intensified these tensions and that the “people of Palestine, Lebanon, and the wider region deserve to live free from fear and violence.”

Pakistan says it is “crucial for all sides to step back from the brink and for the international community to take swift action to de-escalate the situation”.

NICOSIA, Cyprus — The U.K. and Cyprus are jointly calling for peace in the Middle East.

U.K. Defense Secretary John Healey held talks Wednesday with his Cypriot counterpart, Vasilis Palmas, on the east Mediterranean island nation where Britain has two military bases.

Healey’s visit came just hours after Iran launched a missile barrage against Israel. Healey posted on X that British forces “played a part in attempts to prevent further escalation in the Middle East” but didn’t elaborate.

In a statement, the Cypriot Defense Ministry said both officials underscored the need for peace and stability in the eastern Mediterranean and expressed both countries’ readiness to help evacuate civilians from Lebanon.

Palmas told Healey that Cyprus’ plan to assist in the repatriation of third-country nationals evacuated from Lebanon is ready to be set in motion.

NEW YORK — Oil prices are rising again as the world waits to see how Israel will respond to Tuesday’s missile attack from Iran.

After briefly topping $76 earlier Wednesday, the price for a barrel of Brent crude was sitting at $74.04, up 0.7% from the day before.

While Israel is not a major producer of oil, Iran is, and a worry is that a broadening war could affect neighboring countries that are integral to the flow of crude.

U.S. benchmark crude, which has largely been in decline since the spring, is up nearly 3% this week.

BEIRUT — Hezbollah says it fired surface-to-air missiles at an Israeli military helicopter flying over Beit Hillel in northern Israel, forcing it to retreat.

The Lebanese militant group didn’t say if the helicopter was hit in the attack Wednesday, and there was no immediate comment from the Israeli military. It is the first time the group has said it fired a missile at a helicopter since hostilities between the two sides escalated two weeks ago.

Hezbollah and the Israeli military have clashed in southern Lebanese border towns since Israel launched its ground operation against Hezbollah.

Hezbollah earlier said it destroyed three Israeli Merkava tanks heading towards Maroun al-Ras, and detonated an explosive device hidden in an abandoned building on the outskirts of Kfar Kila after Israeli soldiers entered.

UNITED NATIONS – The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations is blaming Iran’s support of its proxies in the Middle East for contributing to the crises in Gaza and Lebanon, and is urging the U.N. Security Council to condemn its “unprovoked” missile attack on Israel.

Linda Thomas-Greenfield reiterated U.S. support for its close ally Israel at an emergency council meeting Wednesday saying: “Let me be clear: the Iranian regime will be held responsible for its actions.”

“And we strongly warn against Iran, or its proxies, taking actions against the United States, or further actions against Israel,” she said.

Thomas-Greenfield accused Iran of complicity in Hamas’ deadly Oct. 7 attacks in southern Israel that sparked the nearly yearlong war, by funding and training its military wing.

She singled out Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps for “encouraging and enabling” Yemen’s Houthi rebels to disrupt global shipping; supporting militant groups in Syria and Iraq that attack American forces; and arming and encouraging Hezbollah militants in Lebanon.

The Security Council is divided on the escalating violence in the Middle East. Many members sharply criticize Israel for killing Palestinian civilians in Gaza and widespread destruction in the territory, as well as civilian casualties in Lebanon. It is unlikely that the 15 council members would condemn Iran without also condemning Israeli actions.

BERLIN — Germany is flying another 130 of its citizens out of Lebanon on a military plane.

The foreign and defense ministries said the Airbus A330 belonging to the Multinational Multi Role Tanker Transport Unit – an international air transport fleet – was sent to Beirut Wednesday to bring back “particularly endangered” Germans.

They said in a statement that the plane delivered 5 tons of aid including medical equipment to the Lebanese capital.

On Monday, a German military plane flew 111 people from Beirut to Berlin, including families of German diplomats, nonessential staff and others.

The ministries said further flights would be prepared as needed.

NEW YORK — Israel’s credit rating has been downgraded for the second time in less than a week, underscoring the heightened risks for its economy as conflict escalates in the region.

S&P Global lowered Israel’s long-term sovereign credit rating on Tuesday.

“We now consider that military activity in Gaza and an upsurge in fighting across Israel’s northern border — including a ground incursion into Lebanon — could persist into 2025, with risks of retaliation against Israel,” S&P wrote.

“The latter in particular has been highlighted by (Tuesday’s) missile attack on Israel by Iran.”

The S&P says it expects delayed economic recovery into the coming year.

Tuesday’s downgrade moves S&P’s credit rating for Israel from “A+” to “A,” signaling a more negative outlook for Israel’s economy but still an investment grade.

On Friday, Moody’s downgraded Israel’s credit rating from “A2” to “Baa1.” That is also still considered investment grade, three notches above “junk” status.

JERUSALEM — The Israeli military says seven soldiers have been killed in combat in southern Lebanon.

The deaths were announced Wednesday, a day after Israel said it had launched a ground incursion across its northern border and on the eve of Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year.

Fighting between Israeli troops and Hezbollah militants is ongoing in southern Lebanon, both sides said in separate statements. Israel has sent more troops and artillery to the border area in recent weeks.

The seven soldiers were killed in two separate incidents, the military said, without elaborating. Seven other troops were injured, including a combat medic, it said.

The death of another Israeli soldier was announced earlier Wednesday. The military said Captain Eitan Itzhak Oster, a 22-year-old in a commando brigade, was killed in combat in Lebanon.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. has imposed sanctions on an Iranian man and three Chinese firms that Washington believes helped the Houthi militant group acquire materials needed to manufacture and deploy advanced missiles and drones against the U.S. and its allies.

Iranian citizen Hasan Ahmad Hasan Muhammad al-Kuhlani is named in the sanctions announced Wednesday. He is accused of facilitating weapons smuggling for the Houthis.

Treasury’s Acting Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Bradley T. Smith says the Houthis “continue to leverage their networks of companies and procurement operatives to sustain their reckless attacks on civilian vessels, their unarmed crews, and civilian populations.”

UNITED NATIONS – The United Nations chief is demanding a halt to the escalation of “tit-for-tat violence” that he warned is leading people in the Middle East “straight over the cliff.”

Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council Wednesday that in just a week the alarming situation in Lebanon has gone from bad “to much, much worse.”

“It is absolutely essential to avoid an all-out war in Lebanon, which would have profound and devastating consequences,” he said.

Guterres strongly condemned Tuesday’s Iranian missile attack against Israel. He also criticized attacks against Israel by Hamas from Gaza and Hezbollah from Lebanon, and he lambasted Israel for the “most deadly and destructive military campaign in my years as secretary-general” — referring to the conflict in Gaza in response to Hamas’ Oct. 7 attacks.

“It is high time for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza,” he said. “It is high time for a cessation of hostilities in Lebanon. … It is high time to stop the sickening cycle of escalation after escalation that is leading the people of the Middle East straight over the cliff.”

JERUSALEM — Israel has eased restrictions on gatherings for its residents living in the country's north near the Lebanese border.

The Home Front Command said up to 50 residents can gather in outside spaces in northern Galilee and the Israeli-held Golan Heights. Gatherings of up to 250 people are allowed in closed spaces.

In the coastal Haifa area, outside gatherings of up to 60 people are allowed, it said Wednesday.

Limits on gatherings were imposed because of near-daily fire by Lebanon's militant Hezbollah group into northern Israel, where evacuation orders for Lebanese living closest to the border remain in place.

MOSCOW — The Kremlin says the situation in the Middle East is developing into the “most alarming scenario" and has called for restraint.

“We urge all sides to show restraint against the backdrop of the ongoing events, and of course, we condemn any actions that lead to the deaths of civilians,” spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday.

Russia’s Foreign Ministry also urged both sides to exercise restraint.

“All parties involved should abandon provocative actions and show restraint and a responsible approach in line with the well-known decisions of the United Nations and its Security Council,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said at a news conference.

In Beijing, China’s Foreign Ministry said it “opposes the violation of Lebanon’s sovereignty, security and territorial integrity and oppose moves that fuel antagonism and escalate tensions.”

“China calls on the international community, especially major countries with influence, to play a constructive role and avoid further turmoil,” the statement said. "China believes that the protracted fighting in Gaza is the root cause of this round of turmoil in the Middle East, and all parties need to work urgently for a comprehensive and lasting cease-fire.”

BEIRUT — The Lebanese militant Hezbollah group says its fighters killed and wounded an unspecified number of Israeli soldiers in clashes in southern Lebanon.

Hezbollah said they detonated an explosive device as Israeli troops tried to cross deeper into Lebanon toward the southern village of Yaroun on Wednesday.

Hezbollah did not provide a breakdown of the alleged Israeli casualties and there was no immediate reaction from the Israeli military, which earlier announced the death of a soldier — the first to be killed in the ground incursion.

BERLIN — Germany says Israel’s decision to bar U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres from entering the country is unhelpful.

Earlier on Wednesday, Israel's foreign minister, Israel Katz, said he was declaring Guterres “persona non grata,” deepening an already wide rift with the United Nations.

German Foreign Ministry spokesperson Sebastian Fischer acknowledged those tensions and said “this step isn’t particularly helpful, because in the end more talks are needed and not fewer talks.” Germany is a staunch ally of Israel.

He said “we shouldn’t deprive ourselves of channels of dialogue that could possibly contribute to bringing about a solution.”

Also Wednesday, Iran’s charge d’affaires in Berlin was summoned to the German Foreign Ministry, where German officials condemned Iran’s missile barrage against Israel on Tuesday and demanded that Tehran and its allies refrain from further attacks.

Neighboring Austria also summoned Iran’s charge d’affaires in Vienna to its Foreign Ministry.

BEIRUT — The Lebanese army says Israeli forces breached approximately 400 meters (yards) into Lebanese territory on Wednesday and then withdrew “after a short period.” The statement was the first official acknowledgement from Beirut that Israeli forces are carrying out a ground incursion into Lebanon.

The Israeli military said Wednesday that ground forces backed by air power killed militants in “close-range engagements,” without saying where.

Earlier Wednesday, Hezbollah’s chief spokesman, Mohammed Afif, told reporters touring sites of Israeli airstrikes in Beirut’s southern suburbs that Hezbollah “fought a heroic battle this morning” in the southern villages of Odaisseh and Maroun al-Ras against Israeli soldiers who launched a ground incursion into Lebanon.

Afif promised the destroyed areas would be rebuild “better and more beautiful than they were before” — echoing what former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike last week, said in 2006, when the militant group fought a monthlong war with Israel.

JERUSALEM — Israel’s foreign minister says he is barring the United Nations secretary-general from entering Israel, accusing him of being biased against the country.

Foreign Minister Israel Katz said Wednesday that he was declaring Antonio Guterres “persona non grata” and that he would be prevented from entering Israel.

The move deepens an already wide rift between Israel and the United Nations.

ATHENS, Greece — Greece’s foreign ministry says a Greek national was among the people killed in a mass shooting in Tel Aviv.

The ministry said in statement Wednesday that the man, whom it did not name, was a resident of Jerusalem.

The ministry condemned the shooting Tuesday, which it called a “terrorist” attack, and expressed the “deepest sorrow” at the death of a Greek national.

Israeli police said Wednesday that seven people were killed in the shooting in the Jaffa neighborhood, including a woman in her 30s carrying her 9-month-old in a baby sling as they walked their dog.

Police say they have arrested people in the West Bank who assisted with the procurement and transfer of weapons.

KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip — Gaza’s Health Ministry has raised the death toll to 51, with at least 82 people wounded, in a large Israeli air and ground operation in the southern city of Khan Younis.

Israel’s military has yet to comment on the operation, which began early Wednesday. Palestinian residents say ground forces pushed into three neighborhoods. Records at the European Hospital in Khan Younis show seven women and 12 children, as young as 22 months old, were among those killed.

Another 23 people, including two children, were killed in separate strikes across Gaza, according to local hospitals.

The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Residents say Israel carried out heavy airstrikes as its ground forces staged an incursion into three neighborhoods in Khan Younis.

Mahmoud al-Razd, a resident who says four of his relatives were killed in the raids, described heavy destruction and says first responders struggled to reach destroyed homes.

TEHRAN, Iran — Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei slammed the presence of American and European troops in the Middle East in his first remarks since Tehran fired a barrage of ballistic missiles at Israel.

Khamenei said Wednesday that their presence is a source of “conflicts, wars, concerns and enmities,” but made no mention of the missile attack the night before.

“Regional nations can manage themselves and ... they will live together in peace,” Khamenei was quoted as saying by the official IRNA news agency.

Iran has long seen the U.S. troop presence on its doorstep as a threat and demands their evacuation from Iraq and elsewhere in the region.

JERUSALEM — The Israeli military has warned people to evacuate another 24 villages in southern Lebanon.

The warning on Wednesday came days after the military launched what it said were limited ground operations near the border to combat the Hezbollah militant group.

The villages are in a U.N.-declared buffer zone established after Israel and Hezbollah fought their last war in 2006.

MADRID — Spain’s Defense Minister Margarita Robles says her government will send two military planes to evacuate 350 Spanish citizens from Lebanon.

Robles said the planes will depart Spain on Thursday “if conditions in the airspace allow it.”

The announcement came a day after Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares urged Spaniards to leave Lebanon and for Israel to stop its assault in the country's south.

Spain has 676 soldiers deployed in Lebanon as part of the United Nations peacekeeping mission.

PARIS — French President Emmanuel Macron has reiterated France’s commitment to Israel’s protection, saying Paris has “mobilized its military resources in the Middle East to counter the Iranian threat.”

French military spokesman Col. Guillaume Vernet declined to comment on military resources deployed after Iran fired a barrage of missiles at Israel on Tuesday. In April, France said its forces in the Middle East intercepted Iranian missiles and drones targeting Israel.

On Wednesday, Macron condemned the Iranian attack “in the strongest terms” and called for restraint from all countries involved in “the dangerous escalation of tensions” in the Middle East. He reiterated France’s demand that “Hezbollah cease its terrorist actions against Israel and its population,” according to a statement from the president's office.

He also called on Israel to quickly end its military operations in Lebanon because “too many civilians have already become victims.”

He said he hopes Lebanon’s “sovereignty and territorial integrity” will be restored, “in strict compliance” with the United Nations Security Council resolution that ended the Israel-Hezbollah war in 2006.

TEHRAN, Iran — Iran’s foreign minister has described the nation’s ballistic missile attack on Israel as self-defense.

Abbas Araghchi made the comments in a television interview on Wednesday in Tehran.

“We sent a message to the American side through the Swiss Embassy suggesting them not to get involved in the story,” Araghchi said. “We will confront and answer any third party that enters any operation against us in support of the Zionist regime and we will have a crushing response.”

He also reiterated that Iran’s response to Israel will be “harsher” if Israel attacks Iran in response.

Police stand guard at the site of an apparent Israeli airstrike in Damascus, Syria, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)

Workers clean at the site of an apparent Israeli airstrike in Damascus, Syria, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)

People collecting remains of victims after an airstrike that hit an apartment in Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday, Oct. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

A firefighter stands in front of an apartment hit by an Israeli airstrike, in Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday, Oct. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

People take their photos with the debris of an Iranian missile intercepted by Israel, near Arad, southern Israel, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Smoke rises a neighborhood that was hit by an Israeli airstrike in Dahieh, Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Smoke rises from an Israeli airstrike in Choueifat, south of Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

A Palestinian woman mourns a child killed in the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip at a hospital morgue in Deir al-Balah, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Palestinians mourn for relatives killed in the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip at a hospital morgue in Deir al-Balah, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

A woman holds her cat in front of a destroyed building at the site of an Israeli airstrike in Dahiyeh, Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Smoke envelops the area near destroyed buildings at the site of an Israeli airstrike in Dahiyeh, Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Mourners take the last look at the body of Sameh al-Asali, 38, a Palestinian worker from Gaza who had been stranded in the territory since the war broke out and was killed by a rocket during Tuesday's night's Iranian strike toward Israel, during his funeral in the West Bank city of Jericho, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)

Officers from the Palestinian National forces inspect part of a rocket, launched during Iran's strike against Israel, at a facility of their unit in the West Bank city of Jericho, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)

Demonstrators hold Iranian, Palestinian and Hezbollah flags and a poster of the Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in a rally commemorating slain Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, in Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Representations of the U.S. and Israeli flags are set on fire as a demonstrator holds a poster of slain Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in a rally commemorating him, in Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

A mourner weeps at the funeral for Israeli Army Capt. Eitan Yitzhak Oster, who was killed in action in Lebanon, at Mt. Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)

A Syrian woman fleeing the war in Lebanon carries a mattress as she arrives at the Syrian-Lebanese border crossing in Jousieh, Syria, Tuesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)

This image from United Nations Television, shows Israel Ambassador Danny Danon during a meeting of the United Nations Security Council, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (UNTV via AP)

Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli airstrike in Dahiyeh, Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

People attend a demonstration to protest against antisemitism and to show their support for Israel at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

A Syrian kid fleeing the war in Lebanon with his family, sits on the top of car between belongings, at the Syrian-Lebanese border crossing in Jousieh, Syria, Tuesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)

Soldiers carry the coffin of Israeli Army Capt. Eitan Yitzhak Oster, who was killed in action in Lebanon, during his funeral at Mt. Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)

An Israeli Apache helicopter releases flares near the Israeli-Lebanon border, as seen from northern Israel, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Baz Ratner)

Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli airstrike in Dahiyeh, Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

A demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag at a rally commemorating slain Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, in Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Demonstrators celebrate Iran's missile strike against Israel during a gathering in front of the British Embassy in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

A demonstrator holds a Palestinian flag during an anti-Israeli gathering celebrating Iran's missile strike against Israel in front of the British Embassy in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

An Israeli mobile artillery unit fires a shell from northern Israel towards Lebanon, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Baz Ratner)

Demonstrators celebrate Iran's missile strike against Israel during an anti-Israeli gathering in front of the British Embassy in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Projectiles fly through the sky in central Israel as a siren sounds a warning of incoming missiles fired from Iran towards Israel, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

An Israeli mobile artillery unit fires a shell from northern Israel towards Lebanon, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Baz Ratner)

Demonstrators celebrate Iran's missile strike against Israel during a gathering in front of the British Embassy in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

In this image taken from video shows projectiles being intercepted over Jerusalem, Israel, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo)

Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli airstrike in Beirut's southern suburb, Lebanon, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

An Israeli soldier raises his fist from a moving APC in northern Israel near the Israel-Lebanon border, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Baz Ratner)

Rescuers arrive at the site of a building that was hit in an Israeli airstrike in Bir Hassan, Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

A damaged building hit in an Israeli airstrike in Bir Hassan, Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Israeli soldiers raise their fists from a moving APC in northern Israel near the Israel-Lebanon border, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Baz Ratner)

Smoke rises following Israeli bombardment in southern Lebanon as seen from northern Israel, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Police guard outside the Israeli embassy in Stockholm, Sweden, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, after a suspected shooting near the embassy. (Anders Wiklund/TT News Agency via AP)

Police work outside the Israeli embassy in Stockholm, Sweden, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, after a suspected shooting near the embassy. (Anders Wiklund/TT News Agency via AP)

EDS NOTE: GRAPHIC CONTENT - Israeli forensic technicians work in a light rail car following a shooting attack in Jaffa, a mixed Arab-Jewish area of Tel Aviv, Israel, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Itai Ron)

Members of Zaka Rescue and Recovery team load a dead person into an ambulance following a shooting attack in Jaffa, a mixed Arab-Jewish area of Tel Aviv, Israel, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Itai Ron)

Israeli air defense system fires to intercept rockets fired from Iran, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, over Hadera, Israel. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Israeli air defense system fires to intercept missiles over Hadera, Israel Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Missiles launched from Iran towards Israel streak across the night sky as seen from Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Demonstrators cheer as they wave Iranian and Hezbollah flags in an anti-Israeli gathering celebrating Iran's missile strike against Israel, at Felestin (Palestine) Sq. in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Fireworks explode next a portrait of slain Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and a minaret of a mosque in an anti-Israeli gathering celebrating Iran's missile strike against Israel, at Felestin (Palestine) Sq. in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Demonstrators cheer as artificial snow sprayed in an anti-Israeli gathering celebrating Iran's missile strike against Israel, at Felestin (Palestine) Sq. in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

People take cover on the side of a road as a siren sounds a warning of incoming missiles fired from Iran on a freeway in Shoresh, between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv in Israel Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

People take cover on the side of the road as a siren sounds a warning of incoming missiles fired from Iran on a freeway in Shoresh, between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv in Israel Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024.(AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Israelis take cover as projectiles launched from Iran are being intercepted in the skies over in Rosh HaAyin, Israel, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)