Dilara Afifi and Ikram Kouachi
22 March 2025•Update: 22 March 2025
BEIRUT/ANKARA
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun condemned on Saturday any attempts to drag Lebanon back into the cycle of violence.
President Aoun's remarks came after Israel claimed that its settlement of Metula was hit by a rocket attack originating from Lebanon, prompting Israeli forces to retaliate with airstrikes on several villages and towns in southern Lebanon.
This marked the first rocket attack of its kind since a ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel went into effect nearly four months ago.
No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack on Metula.
“What occurred today in the south, and what has been happening there since Feb. 18, regarding the failure to adhere to the precise terms of the ceasefire agreement, constitutes an ongoing aggression against Lebanon and undermines the rescue plan that all Lebanese have agreed upon,” said Aoun.
He urged Lebanon's friends to be vigilant "against what is being plotted against Lebanon by multiple hostile parties.”
Aoun also called on all concerned parties in southern Lebanon, particularly the monitoring committee established by the November 2024 ceasefire agreement and the Lebanese army, to “closely monitor the situation and take all necessary measures to prevent any escalation or breaches that could threaten the country.”
Separately, Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam warned of the dangers of dragging Lebanon into a new war.
In a statement on Saturday, Salam cautioned against “further military escalation on Lebanon’s southern border,” noting “the grave consequences it could have for Lebanon and its people.”
He emphasized that “the continuation of hostilities could lead to a new war that would only bring destruction and suffering to the Lebanese people.”
Salam noted holding phone conversations with Lebanese Defense Minister Michel Mounir and UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert.
During his discussions with Mounir, Salam urged for “decisive action to ensure that only the Lebanese state retains the authority to declare war or peace,” reaffirming the government’s “responsibility to manage the situation and prevent further military escalation.”
Salam also expressed his concerns over Israel’s continued occupation of parts of Lebanese territory and called on the international community to “exert greater pressure on Israel to fully withdraw from the occupied territories, as mandated by UN Security Council Resolution 1701.”
In a statement, Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said that "the first and ultimate beneficiary of dragging Lebanon and the region into a major explosion is Israel, along with its security and military apparatus,” which has violated UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and the ceasefire terms more than 1,500 times so far.
He affirmed “Lebanon’s and the resistance’s full commitment to all provisions of the agreement” with Israel that began on Nov. 27, 2024.
Berri called on the Lebanese Army, judicial and security authorities, and the Ceasefire Monitoring Committee to "urgently investigate the circumstances of what happened this morning in the south."
He also renewed his call for "all Lebanese, especially political factions, to purify political discourse and rally around the state and its constitutional, judicial, military, and security institutions."
Earlier on Saturday, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz warned that any further rocket fire targeting Metula would be met with Israeli strikes on Lebanon's capital Beirut.
This latest round of cross-border violence comes amid growing tensions following Israel’s violation of a ceasefire with the Palestinian group Hamas in Gaza.
A fragile ceasefire had also been in place in Lebanon since November, ending months of cross-border warfare between Israel and the Lebanese group Hezbollah, which escalated into a full-scale conflict in September.
Lebanese authorities reported nearly 1,100 Israeli violations of the ceasefire, including the deaths of at least 85 victims and injuries to more than 280.
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.
