An Israeli drone strike killed four people in southern Lebanon on Monday, as Lebanese President Joseph Aoun urged the US administration to pressure Israel to withdraw from occupied Lebanese territories, calling it the key to any “real, tangible, and realistic” progress toward peace.
According to field reports, the Israeli drone targeted a vehicle on the Nabatiyeh Al-Fawqa road, instantly killing all four occupants inside, later identified as three women and a Syrian laborer.
Speaking during a video conference with the American Task Force for Lebanon (ATFL), Aoun stressed the critical need for the Lebanese Army to redeploy along the border. “The continuation of the occupation undermines the state’s legitimacy, prevents army deployment, and thwarts the foundations of a just and lasting peace,” Aoun said, according to National News Agency (NNA).
The President emphasized that “the Lebanese Army and security forces are the cornerstone of stability and security in the South, which is vital for the return of displaced residents to their homes and towns.”
Aoun warned that Israel’s refusal to withdraw from occupied territories “runs counter to the objectives set by both the United States and Lebanon to restore the country’s sovereignty, independence, and the strength of its national institutions.”
On the legal front, Aoun denied that Lebanon has completely dropped its lawsuits against Israel, clarifying that the suspension of these legal proceedings is strictly limited to the duration of ongoing negotiations.
The President also dismissed concerns of Lebanon sliding into civil conflict, asserting that “there is no place for civil war in Lebanon, and its resurgence is completely out of the question, despite attempts by some to stir sectarian discord.”
He added that the Lebanese people have already experienced the tragedies of such conflict and its devastating impact across all segments of society.
On the ground, Israeli occupation forces continued their operations deep inside Lebanese territory. In addition to the fatal vehicle strike, an Israeli drone launched an airstrike on the town of Kfar Tibnit, while reconnaissance drones overflew the southern suburbs of Beirut as well as Tyre and its outskirts.
Furthermore, a drone dropped a sound bomb over a forested area near the town of Mansouri.
In its latest update, the Public Health Emergency Operations Center of the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health reported that the cumulative toll of the Israeli aggression on Lebanon from March 2 to July 6 has reached 4,319 killed and 12,203 injured.
