Opposition MPs submitted a petition to Parliament on Monday, urging Speaker Nabih Berri to hold a question session with the government concerning the ongoing clashes in South Lebanon between Hezbollah and Israel, which began on October 8.

The petition was announced during a press conference at the Hemicycle headquarters in Beirut by MPs Georges Okaiss from the Lebanese Forces, Marc Daou from the Change Alliance, Ashraf Rifi from the Renewal, and Salim Sayegh from the Kataeb.

The MPs emphasize the need to "end military operations that are not within the official framework of the Lebanese state," clearly referencing Hezbollah, which they accuse of making decisions about war and peace independently of Lebanese authorities.

They also call for "declaring a state of emergency in South Lebanon" and officially tasking the Lebanese army with "responding to any attack on Lebanese territory."

Additionally, they demand "diplomatic [action] to return to the 1949 Armistice Agreement [between Lebanon and Israel] and to implement fully the [United Nations] Resolution 1701," which ended the 2006 war with Israel and mandates, among other things, the withdrawal of Hezbollah fighters north of the Litani River.

Citing Article 137 of the Parliament's internal regulations, the opposition MPs requested the opening of a question session with the caretaker government of Najib Mikati to address "the handling of the ongoing war, [strategies to] prevent its escalation, and [the reasons for] its failure to fulfill its constitutional duties." During this session, they plan to urge the government to adopt the measures they recommend to cease the fighting.

On July 15, Kataeb leader Samy Gemayel called for the closure of the South Lebanon front, asserting that cease-fire talks between Hezbollah and Israel do not take into consideration the views of the Lebanese population.