Meeting between the Secretary General of the Arab League, Nabil Fahmy (left), and the Lebanese President, Joseph Aoun, in Baabda, on Oct. 19, 2026. (Credit: Photo X / @LbPresidency)
BEIRUT — Arab League Secretary-General Nabil Fahmy said Monday from Baabda presidential palace that negotiations between Lebanon and Israel “enjoy full Arab support.” The talks are expected to resume in Tampa, Florida, under certain conditions, after nearly three months of suspension. As regional tensions fuel fears of renewed war between Hezbollah and Israel, Fahmy also said political and diplomatic efforts concerning Lebanon would “intensify.”
"Lebanon is among the priorities of the Arab League," Fahmy said after meeting President Joseph Aoun in Baabda. “We reaffirm our support for the Lebanese state and all its institutions, as well as our willingness to stand by its side politically, economically and socially,” he added. Fahmy also announced a visit to southern Lebanon, where the Israeli army continues to occupy about 620 square kilometers of territory and carry out daily strikes.
He pledged to “direct the efforts of the Arab League toward anything that serves the interests of Lebanon and its state,” emphasizing that “political and diplomatic activity regarding Lebanon will be intensified.” “Lebanon’s negotiations with Israel enjoy full Arab support,” Fahmy said, according to the state-run National News Agency (NNA).
Aoun, for his part, denounced Israel’s “daily violations” in southern Lebanon, saying Israel “has not respected the terms” of the framework agreement signed in Washington on June 26. He said the attacks “will lead to no result” and would only strengthen the Lebanese people’s attachment to their land while preventing the state from achieving its stated objectives, particularly deploying the Lebanese Army in the South and disarming Hezbollah.
The president reiterated that diplomacy remains Lebanon’s preferred course despite the difficulties, “because its cost is much lower than that of a devastating war, for which the Lebanese — especially the people of the South — pay the price.”
He said he therefore “welcomes any effort and initiative by the Arab League aimed at helping Lebanon overcome this difficult period.”