Lebanon has right to defend its land amid systematic Israeli escalation, Mikati tells army officers

Lebanon is determined to defend its land and sovereignty, caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said on Friday.

“We will not hesitate to do so, no matter the sacrifices,” he said.

Mikati described the regional developments as “worrisome,” signaling increased danger levels.

He said that “nothing indicates that Israeli arrogance will stop.”

Mikati met with senior officers in the Lebanese army command and cautioned that “the regional developments are concerning.”

He stressed that the army “remains the firm guarantee for the unity of Lebanon, its territory, people, and establishments, making it a national obligation for everyone to unite around the army institution.”

Mikati said that in response to the ongoing and severe Israeli escalation, “we affirm our right to defend our land, sovereignty, and dignity using all available means.”

He stated that he had informed “friendly and brotherly countries that we are advocates of peace, not war.

“We seek permanent stability through Israel’s commitment to implementing UN Resolution 1701 in all its provisions. No Israeli aggression will deter us from that.”

Mikati emphasized the importance of deploying the army in cooperation with the UN Interim Force in Lebanon to prevent violations of “our internationally recognized borders. This is essential for ensuring stability and security for the people in the south.”

He added: “Our right to utilize the resources in our waters is absolute and not open to negotiation.”

Mikati also met with the ambassadors of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council (the US, France, the UK, China, and Russia) and the representatives of the non-permanent member states present in Lebanon (Algeria, Japan, Switzerland, and South Korea).

The meeting came against the backdrop of escalating confrontations between Israel and Hezbollah, which reached their peak on Tuesday with the assassination of senior Hezbollah leader Fuad Shukr in the heart of the southern suburb of Beirut.

Mikati’s media office stated that the assembled ambassadors affirmed Lebanon’s “commitment to implementing UN resolutions, especially Resolution 1701, as a top priority in the region.”

Lebanon has also filed a complaint with the UN Security Council against Israel for its aggression against the southern suburb of Beirut.

It said Israel’s dangerous escalation affected a densely populated residential area in violation of international law and the UN Charter.

In the southern town of Shamaa, a funeral procession was held for a Syrian mother and her three children — Fatima Al-Raja Al-Hajj and her sons Suleiman, Mohammed, and Ahmed Al-Hajj — who were killed in an Israeli airstrike on their home on Thursday night.

The death toll of Syrian civilians who have been killed during the confrontations in the south since Oct. 8 has risen to 18.

The airstrike coincided with Hezbollah holding the funeral procession for Shukr in the southern suburb of Beirut.

Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah vowed on Thursday evening during Shukr’s funeral to respond to his assassination.

He said that Israel “should expect the revenge of the honorable” and that “we have entered a new phase on all support fronts (for Hamas in the Gaza Strip).”

He said Israel “has crossed red lines and has no idea of the kind of aggression it has committed.”

The Israeli army on Friday launched airstrikes and targeted border towns with artillery fire, including Rab El-Thalathine, Dhayra, and Blida, as well as the outskirts of Naqoura and Tayr Harfa.

Hezbollah announced a series of targets that were within the rules of engagement.

It targeted the deployment of Israeli soldiers in the Dhayra site, the Al-Sammaqa site in the occupied Lebanese Kfarchouba Hills and the Bayad Blida site with artillery shells.

The party launched dozens of Katyusha rockets on the Matzuva settlement in the wake of the Israeli attack on Shamaa.