Netanyahu Claims Christian Villages in Lebanon Asked for Annexation, Berri Denounces Lies

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that some Christian villages in Lebanon have “asked to be annexed” by Israel, claiming it would protect them from Hezbollah, and he told Fox News that “we protect them from the fanatics of Hezbollah who want to kill them.”

Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri rejected the claim, charging that Tel Aviv was trying to sow division among border communities through “lies and fabrications,” and he welcomed statements by municipal leaders and religious figures refuting Netanyahu’s allegation.

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Berri also urged the Lebanese government, along with Arab and international actors, to halt “the systematic destruction” of towns and villages in the Bint Jbeil, Marjayoun, Nabatieh, and Tyre districts, arguing the campaign aims to render large parts of the south uninhabitable.

In the same dispute, the mayor of the Christian village of Rmeish, Hanna al-Amil, denied Netanyahu’s claim as “absolutely out of the question,” saying 15 Christian border villages had issued a joint statement denying the allegations.

The Friday statement from the border villages said they had “no power, nor the legal right” to request protection from a foreign government and reaffirmed their “attachment to their Lebanese flag.”

Israeli forces issued evacuation orders to border towns before launching its latest operation against Hezbollah, warning that it could not overlook these villages because Hezbollah operatives were known to hide in them, and the IDF has demolished buildings and homes in southern Lebanon that were allegedly used by Hezbollah to hide fighters and weapons.

UNIFIL said over the weekend that some displaced civilians have begun returning to their villages and that it is continuing to remove rubble and unexploded ordnance from roads to allow passage, with UNIFIL spokeswoman Kandice Ardiel saying, “The sooner people can return home, the better for long-term stability.”

Daily Beirut

In Marjayoun, mayors of Christian villages received text messages from the Israeli side at 5 pm warning them against allowing displaced residents to return to their towns, and Qlayaa mayor Hanna Daher said the message may be linked to the return of some displaced people to the village of Jdeideh Marjayoun.

The Israeli army said it struck four suspects in the al-Aqida neighborhood in Nabatieh Fawqa who “were identified approaching the security zone,” and it said the suspects “posed a threat to [its] forces.”

Lebanon’s Health Ministry said a drone strike on a vehicle in Nabatieh Al-Fawqa killed four people, and the deaths were described as including a public-school principal, her mother, a foreign domestic worker, and a Syrian worker.

The dispute over annexation claims is unfolding alongside Israel-Lebanon talks and a U.S.-mediated security arrangement, with the sources saying Beirut and Tel Aviv agreed on June 26 to a phased Israeli withdrawal in exchange for broader deployment of the Lebanese Army and the disarmament of armed groups.

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Daily Beirut

Lebanon’s Prime Minister Nawaf Salam met with Army Commander Gen. Rodolph Haykal to discuss preparations for implementing the Washington framework agreement, including the launch of Israel’s withdrawal from designated pilot areas, as the Grand Serail said on X.

The Lebanese Army Command began preparing logistical and operational measures for deployment in the first experimental areas, and the sources say the American side completed preparations for field oversight led by General Joseph Clearfield to monitor stages of Israeli withdrawal and Lebanese Army deployment.

Lebanon’s Health Ministry estimated the overall toll from the war between March 2 and July 6 at 4,319 people killed and 12,203 others wounded, and the Ministry also said the cumulative death toll from the Israeli aggression had risen to 4,319 dead and 12,203 wounded.

After a cabinet meeting chaired by Nawaf Salam, Lebanese Information Minister Paul Marcus said the direct initial monetary cost of the war and Israeli bombardment is estimated at about 3 to 4 billion dollars, not including economic losses and indirect damages.