Lebanon acts to bolster state control as Israel continues strikes

Lebanon's cabinet on Thursday ordered the immediate reinforcement of state authority in Beirut and the restriction of weapons to official forces, as it moved to tighten security in the capital amid ongoing Israeli escalation.

Following a session chaired by President Joseph Aoun at Baabda Palace, the government tasked the Lebanese Armed Forces and security agencies with strengthening the state's full control over Beirut and limiting the possession of arms exclusively to legitimate forces.

"Preserving the safety of citizens and their property requires immediate action," Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said, according to the National News Agency, calling for the decision to be implemented without delay.

The cabinet also decided to file an urgent complaint with the United Nations Security Council against Israel over its attacks on Lebanon.

At the start of the session, Aoun said Lebanon is intensifying diplomatic contacts to push for inclusion in a ceasefire and the launch of negotiations.

"We are tired of statements of condemnation," Aoun said, noting that Lebanon had hoped to be included in the ceasefire, but recent positions suggested otherwise. He added that he and Salam are engaging with "a number of Lebanon's friends around the world" to press for giving Lebanon the same opportunity granted to the United States and Iran to reach a ceasefire and move toward negotiations.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on Thursday morning that overnight attacks on Lebanon's capital Beirut killed Ali Yusuf Harshi, the personal secretary and nephew of Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem.

The IDF said it struck two key crossings on Lebanon's Litani River used by Hezbollah to transfer thousands of weapons, rockets and launchers.

Also, about 10 weapons storage facilities, launchers, and command centers used by Hezbollah in southern Lebanon were targeted.

Lebanon received on Thursday a wave of international calls urging de-escalation and expressing solidarity, as Israeli air strikes continue to intensify across the country, hitting Beirut, its southern suburbs, Mount Lebanon, the Bekaa Valley, and the south.

The developments come after the United States and Iran reached a ceasefire agreement, but Israeli strikes continued across Lebanon, with the death toll from Wednesday's attacks surpassing 200 killed and more than 1,000 wounded, according to Lebanese health authorities.

The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would comply with the truce but would continue military operations in Lebanon.

'War begets war'

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf have stressed that stopping attacks on Lebanon is an integral part of the ceasefire reached between the United States and Iran.

They made the remarks in posts on social media platform X on Thursday after Israeli warplanes launched a series of air strikes across Lebanon the previous day, killing and injuring hundreds of people despite the truce.

Iran's president said the "renewed aggression" by Israel against Lebanon "blatantly violates the initial ceasefire," adding, "Such actions signal deception and non-compliance, rendering negotiations meaningless."

Qalibaf described Lebanon and the entire "Resistance Axis" as "Iran's allies," saying, according to point 1 of Iran's 10-point proposal to end the war, they form "an inseparable part of the ceasefire."

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said Thursday that Israeli strikes on Lebanon are "intolerable."

"We strongly condemn these massive strikes," Barrot said on France Inter radio, adding that the attacks are all the more intolerable as they undermine the temporary ceasefire reached earlier between the United States and Iran.

He warned that "war begets war" and that positions are becoming increasingly radicalized and hardened, stressing that negotiations must begin.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday talked over the phone with his Lebanese counterpart Nawaf Salam to discuss Israeli aggression against Lebanon, according to the Prime Minister's Office.

In the call, Shahbaz strongly condemned Israel's continued attacks on Lebanon and expressed his condolences for the thousands of lives lost due to these hostile actions. He said Pakistan is making sincere efforts for regional peace, and it is in this spirit that peace talks between Iran and the United States have been able to take place.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday unequivocally condemned Israel's massive strikes across Lebanon earlier in the day, his spokesperson said.

"The Secretary-General strongly condemns the loss of civilian lives and is deeply alarmed by the mounting toll on civilians," Stephane Dujarric said in a statement, referring to the hundreds of civilians, including children, killed or injured by the strikes.

Why Israel keeps bombing Lebanon

Wang Jin, director of the Center for Strategic Studies at Northwest University, noted that Israel's intention to continue its military operations in Lebanon, driven by its own security considerations, has become a destabilizing factor in the US-Iran temporary ceasefire.

"In reality, Israel, as a key party to the conflict, was not given sufficient consideration," he said. "Even after the ceasefire took effect, Israel's stance has remained ambiguous."

According to Wang, Israel continues to face what it perceives as significant threats from Iran and its regional allies, particularly Hezbollah in Lebanon. Under such circumstances, Israel is still inclined to sustain military operations in southern Lebanon until it can ensure the security of its northern territories, he explained.

Looking ahead, Wang argued that maintaining a durable ceasefire will be challenging. "It requires not only the United States and Iran to bridge their differences, but also Israel to adopt a more rational and objective approach, and to proactively abide by relevant ceasefire arrangements to prevent a renewed escalation," he added.