Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem said Wednesday his group would not accept any truce that violates Lebanese sovereignty, as Israel demands freedom to act against the Iran-backed movement. The declaration came after Israel’s military said it is fighting Hezbollah in Lebanon and not the Lebanese Armed Forces, after the army said that four of its soldiers had been killed in Israeli strikes.
Hezbollah seeks a “complete and comprehensive end to the aggression” and “the preservation of Lebanon’s sovereignty… the Israeli enemy cannot enter (Lebanese territory) whenever it wants”, Qassem said in a pre-recorded speech. “Israel cannot defeat us and cannot impose its conditions on us,” he added.
SUMMARY
- US special envoy Amos Hochstein was reportedly travelling to Israel on Wednesday to meet with Israeli PM Binyamin Netanyahu. Hochstein on Tuesday said that an end to the Israel-Hezbollah war was “now within our grasp” as he met officials to discuss a truce plan largely endorsed by Lebanon.
- Israel’s military said it is fighting the militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon, not the Lebanese Armed Forces, after the latter said four of its soldiers had been killed in Israeli strikes.
- The UN Security Council is expected to vote Wednesday on another draft resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza in its latest attempt to exert pressure to end the war.
- Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem said Wednesday his group would not accept any truce that violates Lebanese sovereignty, as Israel demands freedom to act against the Iran-backed movement.
- The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said on Wednesday that at least 43,985 people have been killed and 104,092 wounded in more than 13 months of war between Israel and Palestinian militants.
- Israeli attack on Syria’s Palmyra kills 36 people and wounded more than 50 on Wednesday after it hit residential buildings and an industrial zone, the Syrian state news agency SANA reported.
- Palmyra’s ancient city is a UNESCO World Heritage site. It was seized by Islamic State militants in 2015 and partially destroyed before it was recaptured by the Syrian army.
- Iraq has accused Israel of attempting to legitimise an attack on its territory, after the Israeli foreign ministry protested to the United Nations about attacks by Iraqi militants.
- France24