The President of Lebanon, Josepth Aoun, has denounced this Friday the increase in bombings carried out by Israeli forces on Lebanese territory despite the ceasefire, warning that this increase in violence is "dangerous and condemnable".
"What we are witnessing today in the south of the country and in the Bekaa Valley is an expansion of Israeli aggressions and more deaths and destruction," he indicated in a statement disseminated on social networks.
The leader stressed that this situation constitutes a "dangerous escalation," especially because "it affects dozens of innocents, including women and children, and targets practically all ongoing attempts to consolidate the ceasefire and end the war."
In this regard, he referred to the recent memorandum of understanding reached between the United States and Iran to try to end the conflict in the Middle East, an agreement that contemplates the cessation of attacks on Lebanese soil and additional guarantees on Lebanon's sovereignty.
"This will not prevent us from working to achieve a comprehensive ceasefire in the shortest possible time, and this is what I have asked the Lebanese negotiating delegation for the next round of contacts in Washington. We cannot be lenient on this matter because a comprehensive ceasefire is the gateway to addressing other issues, the most important being the Israeli withdrawal and the return of prisoners," he clarified.
In parallel, the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, stated this Friday that the Army has "strongly" hit Hezbollah in retaliation for the deaths of four Israeli soldiers in an attack in southern Lebanon, emphasizing that "Israel will not tolerate attacks on its soldiers or its territories."
Israeli authorities have reiterated on several occasions that they have no intention of withdrawing their forces from southern Lebanon and have maintained their military operations despite the memorandum of understanding signed by the United States and Iran. The continuation of these actions, coupled with Tehran's warnings that they constitute violations of the pre-agreement, threatens to derail the fragile peace process in the Middle East.