BEIRUT: The leader of Lebanon’s Hezbollah group on Saturday accused Israel of hundreds of violations of a ceasefire, to be fully implemented by next week, and warned against testing “our patience.”
His remarks came during a visit to Lebanon by United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who called for Israel to end military operations and “occupation” in the south, almost two months into the ceasefire between Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israel.
Guterres on Friday said UN peacekeepers had also found more than 100 weapons caches belonging “to Hezbollah or other armed groups.”
Naim Qassem, the Hezbollah leader, called “on the Lebanese state to be firm in confronting violations, now numbering more than hundreds. This cannot continue,” he said in a televised speech.
“We have been patient with the violations to give a chance to the Lebanese state responsible for this agreement, along with the international sponsors, but I call on you not to test our patience,” Qassem said.
Under the November 27 ceasefire accord, which ended two months of all-out war between Israel and Hezbollah, the Lebanese army has 60 days to deploy alongside peacekeepers from the UNIFIL mission in south Lebanon as the Israeli army withdraws.
At the same time, Hezbollah is required to pull its forces north of the Litani River, around 30 kilometers (20 miles) from the border, and dismantle any remaining military infrastructure it has in the south.
Qassem’s speech came as Guterres met Lebanon’s new President Joseph Aoun, the former army chief who has vowed that the state would have “a monopoly” on bearing weapons.
Analysts say Hezbollah’s weakening in the war with Israel allowed Lebanon’s deeply divided political class to elect Aoun and to back his naming as prime minister Nawaf Salam, who was presiding judge at the International Criminal Court.
Qassem insisted Hezbollah and ally Amal’s backing “is what led to the election of the president by consensus,” after around two years of deadlock.
“No one can exploit the results of the aggression in domestic politics,” he warned. “No one can exclude us from effective and influential political participation in the country.”
After his meeting with Aoun on Saturday, Guterres expressed hope Lebanon could open “a new chapter of peace.” The UN chief has said he is on a “visit of solidarity” with Lebanon.
French President Emmanuel Macron was also in Lebanon on Friday and said there must be “accelerated” implementation of the Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire.
Hezbollah chief warns Israel over ‘hundreds’ of truce violations
https://arab.news/8tp4u
Hezbollah chief warns Israel over ‘hundreds’ of truce violations
- Naim Qassem, the Hezbollah leader, called “on the Lebanese state to be firm in confronting violations, now numbering more than hundreds. This cannot continue”
- “I call on you not to test our patience“
Seven dead, 11 hurt in southern Turkiye bus crash
- Seven people died and 11 others were hurt early Saturday when an intercity bus crashed into a lorry on a motorway in southern Turkiye, the local governor’s office said
ISTANBUL: Seven people died and 11 others were hurt early Saturday when an intercity bus crashed into a lorry on a motorway in southern Turkiye, the local governor’s office said.
The incident, which happened before dawn on the highway linking the cities of Adana and Gaziantep, happened when a coach plowed into an articulated lorry that had stopped after one of its tires blew out, state news agency Anadolu said.
Footage from the scene showed the front right section of the bus was totally mangled where it hit the back of the lorry about 90 kilometers (55 miles) west of Gaziantep.
Quoting the Osmaniye governor’s office, Anadolu said all of the dead and injured were on board the bus with efforts ongoing to to identify the victims.
The lorry driver, who survived the crash, was detained with police closing down the road, it said.
