News - Middle East: Lebanon's Foreign Minister Youssef Raji says his country has received warnings from Arab and international parties that the Israeli regime is preparing for “a large-scale military operation” against Lebanon.

Raji told Al-Jazeera that Beirut is engaged in “diplomatic efforts to protect Lebanon and its facilities from any Israeli attack in the near future.”

Ahead of the second round of talks between Israeli and Lebanese representatives under the auspices of the ceasefire monitoring mechanism scheduled for next Friday, Raji said the meetings focus on the implementation of the ceasefire agreement reached last year, including an end to the Israeli attacks and the withdrawal of Israeli troops, and the release of captives.  

He ruled out the signing of a normalization agreement with Israel, saying it’s “currently far away.”

The minister reiterated that Lebanon is committed to the Arab Peace Initiative, endorsed by the 2002 Arab League Summit, which offered Israel recognition in exchange for a complete withdrawal from Palestinian territories occupied since the 1967 Six-Day War and the establishment of a Palestinian state with East al-Quds as its capital.

His remarks came as Israel intensified its strikes on Lebanon on Friday, hitting hills and valleys in the Jezzine and Zahrani areas, including locations near al-Aaichiyeh, between al-Zrariyeh and Ansar, and around Jabal al-Rafie and the outskirts of several towns.

According to eyewitnesses, the airstrikes targeted civilian sites and open fields.

Israel and Hezbollah agreed to a ceasefire that took effect on November 27, 2024. Under the deal, Tel Aviv was required to withdraw fully from Lebanese territory—but has kept forces stationed at five sites, in clear violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and the terms of the November 2024 agreement.

Since the implementation of the ceasefire, Israel has violated the agreement thousands of times through repeated assaults on Lebanese territory. Lebanese authorities have warned that the regime’s violations of the ceasefire threaten national stability.

Source: Press TV