BEIRUT: The Israeli Air Force carried out a series of air raids on Iqlim Al-Tuffah in southern Lebanon on Monday, as drones and reconnaissance aircraft violated Lebanese airspace over Beirut and its southern suburbs at low altitudes, reaching as far as the Bekaa Valley.
The strikes coincided with renewed US pressure on Lebanon to disarm Hezbollah.
Israeli aircraft targeted the outskirts of the towns of Jarmaq and Aishiyeh with eight raids in the Jezzine district.
An Israeli military spokesperson confirmed they had struck “terrorist sites” and Hezbollah infrastructure “being rebuilt across Lebanon in violation of existing understandings between Israel and Lebanon.”
The spokesperson confirmed that “the Israeli Army will continue to work to eliminate any threat and protect the State of Israel.”
The escalation comes amid mounting pressure on the Lebanese government to enforce the state’s monopoly on arms.
President Joseph Aoun concluded consultations with Lebanese officials on Monday regarding the initiative he launched last week, parallel to the Gaza agreement, aiming to begin indirect negotiations with Israel.
He met with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, who acts as a mediator between Hezbollah and foreign powers.
“Lebanon is trying to find a way out of the impasse it faces. Claims of obstruction to implementing arms control under state authority are untrue. The Lebanese Army has a plan in place and is carrying it out. Each month, it submits a report on its achievements south of the Litani River to the Council of Ministers and will continue doing so until the end of the year. This plan was approved by the American side and the Mechanism Committee,” an official source told Arab News.
Regarding the Israeli demand that the plan cover all of Lebanon before the end of the year, the source said: “Lebanon currently has 9,300 soldiers deployed south of the Litani River. Increasing this number requires resources the army does not currently possess. It has specific needs and is requesting assistance, which all parties are aware of.
“Adding to these challenges is the Security Council’s decision to withdraw UNIFIL forces from Lebanon by the end of next year,” the source added. “The army’s operations south of the Litani River are conducted in coordination with UNIFIL.”
The official source stressed that “the concept of negotiations with Israel exists on the Lebanese side and is approved by all parties, including Hezbollah, as the choice is between war and diplomacy. The format of these negotiations will be determined in due course.”
Last week President Aoun said: “The region is moving toward negotiations aimed at establishing peace and stability. Through dialogue and negotiations, which will be determined at the appropriate time, solutions can be reached.”
He continued: “Lebanon cannot be excluded from efforts to resolve the region’s ongoing crises, as continued war, destruction, killing, and displacement can no longer be tolerated.”
Aoun added that Lebanon had previously negotiated with Israel under US and UN auspices, resulting in the maritime border demarcation agreement announced from UNIFIL headquarters in Naqoura.
“What prevents a similar process from happening again to resolve the outstanding issues, especially since the war went in vain?” Aoun asked.
“Israel resorted to negotiating with Hamas because it had no other option after experiencing war and destruction. Today, the situation in the region is one of compromise, and negotiations are necessary. The framework for negotiations will be determined in due course,” he said.
Thomas Barak, US envoy to Syria, warned in a lengthy post on Monday that “if Beirut fails to take action on disarmament, Hezbollah’s military wing will inevitably face a major confrontation with Israel at a moment of Israel's strength and a point of weakness for the Iranian-backed Hezbollah.”
Barak stated that “while Syria is restoring stability through normalization with its neighbors, including Israel and Turkiye, this step should constitute the first pillar of Israel’s northern security framework. The second pillar must be the disarmament of Hezbollah inside Lebanon and the initiation of security and border discussions with Israel.”
He added that Tehran “continues to fund Hezbollah’s militia despite sanctions, and the Lebanese Cabinet is sending conflicting messages to the Lebanese Armed Forces, which lack the funding and authority to carry out its missions.”
He also noted that “regional partners are ready to invest in Lebanon, provided that Lebanon regains its monopoly on legitimate force under the sole control of the Lebanese Armed Forces. If Beirut continues to hesitate, Israel may act unilaterally, and the consequences will be dire.
“If Israel launches a serious military attack on Hezbollah, and the party loses territory, political power, or reputation, it will likely seek to postpone the parliamentary elections next May to rebuild its military strength and political organization. However, postponing the elections under the pretext of war will lead to major chaos within Lebanon, reigniting sectarian mistrust,” he warned.
“The perception that a single militia can suspend democracy could undermine public confidence in the state, invite regional intervention, and threaten to push Lebanon from crisis to complete institutional collapse,” Barak concluded.
In a separate development, the Grand Mufti of the Lebanese Republic Sheikh Abdul Latif Derian, met on Monday at Dar Al-Fatwa with the Saudi Ambassador to Lebanon Walid Bukhari.
A statement from the mufti’s media office said the meeting emphasized “the importance of Lebanon’s stability and security (…) as integral to Arab security and to shaping a new, more stable, humane, and secure regional landscape.
“Security and development in Lebanon can only be achieved through comprehensive stability and the state’s full assumption of its national responsibilities,” it added.
The statement said that both sides reaffirmed “their support for the Lebanese Army and other security forces, as well as their backing for extending state authority across all Lebanese territory, based on the army’s efforts to implement government decisions concerning the monopoly on arms and the supremacy of state sovereignty over all its lands.”
They also urged Lebanon’s government to continue taking decisive action toward economic and institutional reform while pursuing balanced diplomacy to restore trust and attract international support.
