Aoun says Israeli strikes on Lebanon send ‘clear message’ on negotiations

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said Israeli strikes on the country’s south on Saturday were a “clear message” on negotiations between the two countries, ahead of the next round of US-sponsored talks early next month in Rome. Aoun condemned the “ongoing Israeli attacks” on the south and “repeated violations of the framework agreement... and international law on protecting civilians, which led to the death of an entire family in the village of Ansar,” according to a statement from his office, adding that “these violations are a clear message on the negotiation process.” Lebanese state media said an Israeli strike in the country’s south killed seven people, the worst toll since deals in June saw a lull in hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah. The National News Agency (NNA) said Israel “escalated its attacks on the south” early Saturday, reporting that “a strike launched by enemy warplanes on a home” on the outskirts of the village of Ansar “killed seven people and wounded three others.” For all the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app. It said the strike destroyed the home and that emergency rescuers were removing rubble and transporting the casualties to hospital. The Israeli military said later on Saturday that it had struck Hezbollah infrastructure in southern Lebanon “in response to action against soldiers in security zone.” However, Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said seven people including two women and three children killed in the Israeli strike were not military targets, after Israel said it struck Hezbollah “infrastructure.” “The seven martyrs of the Israeli strike on the village of Ansar are not ‘military infrastructure’ and the women and children who were killed are not military targets,” Salam said, adding that “Israel must halt this escalation,” which he said was “extremely dangerous and undermines efforts to consolidate stability in the south.” Hezbollah drew Lebanon into the Middle East war in March with rocket fire at Israel in support of its backer Iran. Israel responded with heavy airstrikes and a ground invasion that Lebanese authorities say have killed more than 4,300 people. Violence has significantly decreased since the signing of a US-Iran memorandum of understanding in June on the broader Middle East war, and a US-sponsored framework deal between Lebanon and Israel agreed later that month. But Lebanon still reports intermittent Israeli strikes occasionally causing casualties, and the broad demolitions of civilian buildings in southern villages and towns. The NNA said “the valley between Ansar and Zarariyeh was also subjected to a strike, the first at this geographical depth since the ceasefire two months ago.” It also said “Israeli warplanes carried out a series of airstrikes targeting the Ali al-Taher ridge,” a strategic hill overlooking the Nabatieh area, also reporting Israeli shelling there. The news agency said Israeli forces detonated homes in the town of Bint Jbeil near the border. The Israel-Lebanon framework deal includes the disarmament of Hezbollah, a gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from south Lebanon and the deployment of the Lebanese army to the region, starting in “pilot zones.” On Friday, Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem accused Lebanese authorities of subjecting the country’s armed forces to undue pressure by implementing the deal. “How can you accept this ongoing humiliation of the Lebanese army, exposing it to bombardment and Israeli pressures, instead of acting as its protectors?” Qassem said. This week, Human Rights Watch urged the United Nations to keep an international force in Lebanon after its peacekeepers’ mandate ends this year, saying that “the peacekeepers are a crucial deterrent against attacks on civilians and human rights abuses.” Read more: Iran will not resume US talks, Hormuz shipping depends on conditions: FM Araghchi Advertisement Advertisement