Lebanese president urges international action amid ongoing border tensions

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on Saturday called on the international community to fulfill its commitments to Lebanon and translate its supportive stances into concrete actions. (AFP/File Photo)
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Updated 15 March 2025
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Lebanese president urges international action amid ongoing border tensions

  • On Saturday, an Israeli drone strike targeted a vehicle in the village of Bourj El-Mlouk, killing one person

BEIRUT: Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on Saturday called on the international community to fulfil its commitments to Lebanon and translate its supportive stances into concrete actions.

Speaking at Dar Al-Fatwa on Saturday evening, Aoun stressed the importance of implementing UN Resolution 1701 and enforcing the ceasefire agreement, warning that Lebanon cannot achieve stability while tensions persist along its southern borders.

“The implementation of UN Resolution 1701 and the ceasefire agreement is a pivotal issue requiring attention and care,” Aoun said. He emphasized that Lebanon’s sovereignty, security, and stability depend on the enforcement of international resolutions, the withdrawal of Israeli forces, and the return of Lebanese detainees.

Aoun underscored that normal life cannot resume in affected areas without concrete steps to uphold Lebanon’s territorial integrity. He urged international actors to take responsibility and ensure that Lebanon's security is safeguarded.

His remarks came amid renewed violence along the Lebanese-Israeli border.

On Saturday, an Israeli drone strike targeted a vehicle in the village of Bourj El-Mlouk, killing one person.

The Israeli military claimed the victim was a member of Hezbollah, though Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency did not provide further details.

The airstrike is the latest in a series of attacks following a US-brokered ceasefire that ended a 14-month conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in late November.

Despite the truce, sporadic violence has continued, raising concerns over the fragility of the ceasefire and the potential for renewed hostilities.


Rubio pushes for New Year’s humanitarian truce in Sudan

Updated 5 sec ago
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Rubio pushes for New Year’s humanitarian truce in Sudan

  • “Ninety-nine percent of our focus is this humanitarian truce and achieving that as soon as possible,” Rubio said
  • “And we think that the new year and the upcoming holidays are a great opportunity”

WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Friday that the new year offered a chance for a humanitarian truce in war-ravaged Sudan as he urged outside countries to exert leverage.
“Ninety-nine percent of our focus is this humanitarian truce and achieving that as soon as possible,” Rubio told a news conference.
“And we think that the new year and the upcoming holidays are a great opportunity for both sides to agree to that, and we’re really pushing very hard on that regard,” he said.
Sudan has been devastated since the army and rival paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) went to war in April 2023, with tens of thousands of people killed, millions displaced and widespread abuses and hunger.
Rubio said both sides have violated commitments as he voiced alarm at new reports of humanitarian convoys being struck.
“What’s happening there is horrifying. It’s atrocious,” he said.
“One day the story of what’s actually happened there is going to be known, and everyone involved is going to look bad.”
“Someone is allowing it to be shipped in, and someone is actually shipping it. So we’ve had the right and appropriate conversations with all sides of this conflict,” he said.
“We’re hopeful that we can make some progress on this, but we know that in order to make progress on this, it will require outside actors to use their leverage,” Rubio concluded.