Israel establishes security zone inside Lebanon: Lebanese parliament speaker

BEIRUT

Israel has established a border security zone inside Lebanon, Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said on Tuesday.

"The Israeli occupation was not limited to the five border hills, but extended to establish a border strip extending a kilometer or two inside Lebanese territory," Berri told the Lebanese daily Addiyar.

A fragile ceasefire has been in place in Lebanon since Nov. 27, ending months of cross-border warfare between Israel and Hezbollah that escalated into a full-scale conflict in September.

Under the ceasefire deal, Israel was supposed to fully withdraw from southern Lebanon by Jan. 26, but the deadline was extended to Feb. 18 after Israel refused to comply. It still maintains a military presence at five border outposts.

“Lebanon will not allow Israel to impose new realities on the ground,” Berri said, calling on the international community to halt repeated Israeli violations of Lebanese sovereignty.

“Lebanon will not accept any attempts to trade aid for political or military conditions, whether related to the resistance's weapons north of the Litani River or other internal issues,” Berri stressed.

The Lebanese parliament speaker also accused Israel of seeking to interfere in the affairs of neighboring countries, particularly Syria by manipulating its demographic composition and claiming to protect certain groups such as the Druze.

Druze make up about 3% of Syria’s population and are also known as “Al-Muwahhidun” (the Unitarians). They are primarily concentrated in the southern province of Suwayda, with smaller communities in Damascus, its countryside, Quneitra, and northern Idlib.

After the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime, Israel expanded its occupation of the Syrian Golan Heights by seizing the demilitarized buffer zone, a move that violated the 1974 disengagement agreement with Syria. It also intensified airstrikes targeting Syrian military positions across the country.

Israel’s recent military advances in the Golan Heights, which it has occupied since 1967, have drawn condemnation from the UN and several Arab nations.