File: US envoy Morgan Ortagus and Lebanon President Joseph Aoun
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun held several phone talks with US officials Americans over the past hours, following the most dangerous cross-border violence with Israel since the November ceasefire that ended the war, according to Lebanese media reports
Aoun’s efforts resulted in keeping the capital Beirut and the Lebanese regions outside the scope of (Israel’s) strikes,” Nidaa al-Watan newspaper reported on Sunday.
The Israelis however told the Americans that they will “keep targeting any Hezbollah activity in any region while sparing civilians and state institutions,” Nidaa al-Watan said.
Israel’s major escalation against Lebanon on Saturday, which killed seven people and wounded 31 others, came after it intercepted three rockets fired from Lebanon at the northern Israeli settlement of Metula near Lebanon’s border.
According to UN resolution 1701 Hezbollah should move north of the Litani River but all the recent violence is taking place south of the river. The resolution also states that only the Lebanese army is entitled to bear weapons which implies that Hezbollah should hand over its arms to the Lebanese army but so far it continues to stress that it will remain a resistance movement. According to analysts Hezbollah’s main goal is to increase Iran’s influence in the region at Lebanon’s expense.
The Shiite community suffered the most from the 2006 and 2023 wars between Hezbollah and Israel.