BEIRUT: Lebanon’s Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati convened with ambassadors from Western nations and representatives of international organizations on Monday to discuss recent events in southern Lebanon, including Israeli aggression against its Civil Defense workers.
Mikati emphasized the necessity for the UN Security Council to adopt more effective and decisive measures in addressing violations and attacks by Israel on Lebanese civilians.
He also asserted that “the response from the Security Council must be prompt and robust, aimed at safeguarding innocent civilians and the Civil Defense personnel who are striving diligently to alleviate the suffering of the civilian population.”
Mikati urged “the Security Council to assume its responsibility in upholding international law and security by holding accountable those responsible for targeting Lebanese civilians.”
He reaffirmed Lebanon’s commitment to peace and stability and the protection of its people, and added that international cooperation and support were crucial for achieving lasting stability in the region.
The prime minister’s comments came as Al-Fajr Forces — the military wing of the Al-Jama’ah Al-Islamiyah movement — joined the military escalation involving the Iran-backed Hezbollah and the Israeli army.
The group’s move heightened tensions on Monday along the southern front in Lebanon.
Explosions were reported on the Israeli side after Hezbollah launched rockets toward Israeli military positions, while the Israeli army intensified its airstrikes on southern towns.
The recent escalation of confrontations has signaled a return to the precarious situation which had existed prior to Aug. 25.
An Israeli attack on the town of Froun in Lebanon resulted in the deaths of three Civil Defense paramedics, Qassem Bazi, Mohammed Hashim, and Abbas Hamoud, while two others sustained serious injuries.
Israeli army radio announced that Hezbollah had targeted northern Israel with three waves of rocket fire, resulting in damage to a building in Kiryat Shmona, and added that the group had “launched about 100 rockets towards northern Israel in the past 24 hours.”
Hezbollah announced on Monday that it had targeted “the Ma’ayan Baruch site with missile fire, achieving a direct hit.”
Sirens were activated in the Manara settlement in Upper Galilee, as well as in Kiryat Shmona and its surrounding areas.
The Israeli military reported “the detection of two drones that infiltrated from Lebanon, with one of them landing in Nahariya.”
The Israel Fire and Rescue Authority said that “a multi-story building in Nahariya, located approximately 14 km from the Lebanese border, sustained a direct hit.”
Rescue teams assessed the damage and conducted searches.
Shahar Toledano, whose apartment was hit by the drone, reportedly told Israeli media: “I was sitting with my insurance agent. Suddenly, we heard one siren go off and then one after the other. We rushed into the bunker, and heard a very loud boom.
“The windows were blown away, and shrapnel went everywhere. We are used to the sound of explosions, but not such explosions.”
A siren went off in Arab Al-Aramsha, located near the border with Lebanon, while Hezbollah confirmed that it had “targeted the headquarters of the Golani Brigade and Egoz Unit 621 in the Shagra barracks north of Acre with suicide drones.”
In addition, Al-Fajr Forces later announced that it had “targeted and directly hit Beit Hillel sites near Kiryat Shmona with rockets.”
Hezbollah went on to announce that it had “intercepted an Israeli warplane, bombed the new Western Brigade Command headquarters in the south of the Yaara barracks, and targeted Israel’s Al-Marj military site with artillery shells.”
In the later hours of Monday, Hezbollah claimed a series of new operations had targeted “the surveillance equipment at Al-Ramtha site in the occupied Lebanese Kfar Shuba Hills, Habushit and Jal Al-Alam.”
