Lebanon seeks Israeli troop withdrawal as Prime Minister Nawaf Salam says his government is working to stop the war and secure Israel’s exit from all Lebanese territory. His remarks came as fighting continued in the south and ahead of planned talks in Washington involving Lebanese, Israeli and US officials.
In a televised address on Sunday, Salam said Lebanon would continue efforts to negotiate an end to the conflict. He stressed that the goal was not only to stop the war, but also to ensure an Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese land. The conflict has continued to escalate since Hezbollah fired rockets at Israel after US-Israeli strikes killed Iran’s supreme leader. Israel then responded with large-scale air strikes and a ground invasion.
The war’s human cost continued to grow on Sunday. Lebanon’s health ministry said the overall death toll had risen to more than 2,050, including 165 children and more than 80 health workers.
The Lebanese Red Cross said an Israeli drone directly struck a humanitarian mission in southern Lebanon, killing one paramedic and injuring another. The organisation said its ambulances and crews were clearly marked with the Red Cross emblem. It also said it had coordinated with UNIFIL before the mission to secure protection and safe passage.
The Lebanese Red Cross condemned the strike on its personnel as a clear and blatant violation of international law. Jagan Chapagain, secretary general of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, said he was appalled and saddened by the killing of a second Lebanese Red Cross volunteer in recent weeks. UNIFIL also reported that an Israeli tank rammed its vehicles twice, with one incident causing significant damage. These accounts have intensified concern over the dangers facing humanitarian and peacekeeping personnel in the conflict zone.
Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported Israeli attacks on dozens of locations in the south on Sunday, along with additional strikes in the nearby West Bekaa area. The health ministry also said an Israeli strike on Qana killed five people, including three women, and wounded 25 others. An AFP photographer in the town saw heavy destruction as rescue workers cleared debris and recovered bodies from the rubble.
Read: Israeli Strikes Kill 18 in Lebanon, Gaza and West Bank
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told troops in south Lebanon that the fight was far from over, underscoring how fragile any diplomatic path remains.
