Shafaq News- Beirut
Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam on Thursday reaffirmed that decisions on war and peace must remain exclusively in the hands of the state, as the war between Israel and Hezbollah entered its second month since escalating on March 2.
Following a Cabinet session, Salam described the conflict as a “devastating war” many Lebanese had feared and viewed as imposed on the country. He renewed the government’s rejection of any military activity outside state institutions and stressed efforts to “spare Lebanon further tragedies and losses” while mobilizing Arab and international support to end the fighting.
Israeli operations, he warned, appear to be expanding beyond previous patterns, citing what he described as “a significant expansion of occupied areas,” discussions of buffer zones, and mass displacement exceeding one million people. He also cautioned against linking Lebanon to wider regional conflicts, noting that “nothing entrenches linking our land to others’ wars more than what is being announced of military actions carried out jointly and simultaneously with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.”
Israeli strikes have continued to hit multiple areas across Lebanon, particularly the south and Beirut’s southern suburbs. According to Lebanon’s Health Ministry, 1,268 people have been killed and 3,750 wounded, including 125 children and 88 women, in addition to more than 150 casualties among healthcare workers. In response, Hezbollah has launched attacks targeting what it describes as Israeli military positions, framing its operations as “defense of Lebanon and its people.”
Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem previously described the confrontation as a “legitimate act of defense” against Israeli attacks and criticized the Lebanese government, arguing that it had failed to secure sovereignty and protect civilians during the escalation. His remarks follow the November 27, 2024 ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel, after which the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) has recorded more than 10,000 Israeli violations, including near-daily strikes that have killed and wounded hundreds of civilians, among them women and children.