Caretaker Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdallah Bou Habib (left) and caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati (right), 8 April 2023. (Courtesy of Hoda Chedid)
BEIRUT — Lebanon will send a letter of complaint to the Secretary-General of the United Nations and the Security Council, through Lebanon's mission to the United Nations affirming “Lebanon's commitment to international resolution 1701," and "denouncing Israeli bombardments on Lebanon that took place Friday at dawn," a statement from Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati’s office said Saturday after a meeting Mikati held with Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdallah Bou Habib.
The 1701 resolution was adopted in 2006 as an attempt to end the 34-day war between Israel and Hezbollah.
“The letter also denounces the Israeli attacks on Lebanon by air, land and sea,” the statement explained.
After the Israeli airstrikes on South Lebanon, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement that it intends to file a complaint to the UN.
"The Israeli strikes and aggression today at dawn are a flagrant violation of the sovereignty of Lebanon and an outrageous breach of Security Council Resolution 1701.” These strikes "threaten the stability that prevailed in southern Lebanon."
The Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdallah Bou Habib, Saturday instructed Jeanne Murad, the acting permanent representative in New York, to convey the Lebanese government's letter of complaint to both the Secretary-General of the United Nations and the Security Council, Bou Habib’s press office said in a statement Saturday afternoon.
In the complaint Lebanon warned of the “seriousness of recent developments in the region, especially the villages in South Lebanon, affirmed its keenness to work to remove the fuse of sedition and to call for calm, and that Israel is responsible for the repercussions of any escalation of the situation on Lebanon's southern.”
Lebanon “condemned the attacks carried out by Israel at dawn on Friday 4/7/2023 on areas in South Lebanon, which endangered the lives of civilians, as an act of aggression as it is:
• A flagrant violation of Lebanon's sovereignty
• A threat to the stability that South Lebanon used to enjoy
• A flagrant violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701
• A threat to international peace and security.”
Lebanon also “renewed its refusal to use its territory as a platform to [endanger] the existing stability while preserving its legitimate right to self-defense, and reaffirmed that keeping the lines of communication open with the United Nations and UNIFIL forces is the best way to solve problems and to maintain calm and stability, expressing its readiness to [consistently] cooperate with the peacekeeping forces in the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701.”
The Israeli army said it struck three "infrastructure" targets belonging to Hamas in the area of Rashidiyeh Palestinian refugee camp, near Sour. This is the first time Israel has confirmed that it has attacked Lebanese territory since April 2022.
The Israeli strikes followed rocket fire launched from southern Lebanon Thursday afternoon.
These rocket fire came a day after Israeli police stormed the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem, the third holiest site in Islam, to dislodge Palestinians who had barricaded themselves there.
By Friday morning, the situation had returned to normal in southern Lebanon, and a precarious calm prevailed in the areas affected by the strikes. But in the early evening, Israel announced that it had shot down a drone that had penetrated its territory from Lebanon.
Reacting to these incidents, Hezbollah Deputy Secretary-General Naim Qassem said Friday that "the entire axis of resistance remains vigilant."