Israel pounds south Lebanon ahead of second cabinet meeting on Hezbollah arms
The Israeli army claimed in a statement that it struck weapons warehouses and ‘tools’ used by Hezbollah to restore military infrastructure
Massive Israeli airstrikes targeted several areas in the south of Lebanon late on 7 August, with Tel Aviv claiming it attacked Hezbollah’s “attempts to restore terrorist infrastructure.”
The Israeli army said on Thursday that it “attacked terrorist targets of the Hezbollah terrorist organization in southern Lebanon,” including “weapons warehouses, a launcher, and the organization's infrastructure where engineering tools used for restoring terrorist infrastructure in the area were stored.”
“The Hezbollah terrorist organization continues attempts to restore terrorist infrastructure throughout Lebanon, endangering Lebanese civilians and using them as human shields. The presence of weapons and Hezbollah terrorist organization activity in the area constitutes a violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon,” the Israeli army added.
Israeli attacks on the town of Deir Siryan on Wednesday night killed a Syrian national and injured two other people, Al-Akhbar’s correspondent reported on Thursday.
Israeli drones bombed Deir Siryan at least five times, and prevented ambulances from advancing.
Bombing also targeted Mahmoudia and the town of Ansar. Video footage showed large explosions as a result of the attacks, which came a day before the Lebanese cabinet was expected to meet for the second time this week to discuss Hezbollah’s weapons. Earlier on Wednesday, an 11-year-old boy was killed in an Israeli drone strike in south Lebanon.
The second cabinet session will begin on the afternoon of 7 August.
On Tuesday, the cabinet met and adopted a decision calling for Hezbollah to disarm, without prioritizing an end to Israeli attacks and a withdrawal of Israeli forces from the five occupied hills in southern Lebanon.
Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said the Lebanese army has been tasked with drafting a plan to achieve a state monopoly on arms by the end of the year. He added that the plan must be presented to the Council of Ministers at the end of August.
Hezbollah and Amal Movement ministers withdrew from the session in rejection of the decision.
The Lebanese resistance group said in a statement on 6 August that the government committed a “grave sin.”
“This decision undermines Lebanon’s sovereignty and gives Israel free rein to tamper with our security, geography, politics, and our very future. Therefore, we will treat this decision as if it does not exist. At the same time, we remain open to dialogue, to ending the Israeli aggression on Lebanon, liberating its land, freeing its captives, rebuilding what was destroyed by the brutal assault, and engaging in discussions over a national defense strategy – but not under the weight of aggression,” the resistance group said.
Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem delivered a speech as the cabinet session took place on Tuesday, reaffirming the Lebanese resistance’s refusal to surrender its weapons.
The group has repeatedly said it is prepared to discuss incorporating its weapons into the state for a defensive strategy in which they could be used to defend the country from Israel.
The group also stresses that this is purely an internal matter, and that no such discussions can begin until Israel ends its attacks and withdraws from the five points it occupied in south Lebanon since last year's ceasefire.
The government decision follows months of heavy pressure from Washington, which reportedly demanded that the Lebanese cabinet adopt a decision to disarm the resistance.