Shafaq News- Beirut

Lebanon will liberate “every inch” of its territory still under Israeli occupation, Lebanese Army Commander Rodolphe Haikal stated on Tuesday, stressing that internal stability is the strongest weapon to protect Lebanon from ongoing dangers.

During an inspection tour of Lebanese army forces in the northern city of Tripoli, Haikal warned that “any attempt to undermine the military institution or question its role serves the objectives of occupation and fuels internal strife.”

تفقَّد قائد الجيش العماد رودولف هيكل قيادة لواء المشاة الثاني عشر في القبة – طرابلس، حيث اطّلع على المهمات المنفَّذة في قطاع اللواء، والتقى الضباط والعسكريين، وقدَّمَ لهم التعازي باستشهاد أحد رفاقهم بتاريخ 17 /4 /2026 متمنّيًا الشفاء العاجل للجرحى نتيجة تعرُّض دورية للجيش لإطلاق… pic.twitter.com/92PmZlMPDT

— الجيش اللبناني (@LebarmyOfficial) April 21, 2026

Earlier, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri warned that Israeli forces occupying lands in southern Lebanon could face resistance if they do not withdraw. “We will break the yellow line made by Israeli occupation,” Berri vowed in press remarks. Lebanese Druze leader Walid Jumblatt, after a meeting with Berri, said Lebanon “cannot go beyond a return to the 1949 truce agreement with Israel.”

Since March 2, Israeli strikes have killed 2,294 people and injured 7,544 others as of April 17, including 177 children and 274 women among the dead, and 704 children and 1,223 women among the injured, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry.

Meanwhile, the Israeli army said it had killed some “militants” accused of violating ceasefire understandings in Lebanon, without providing further details.