BEIRUT/JERUSALEM/DAMASCUS – Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on Monday called for direct negotiations between Lebanon and Israel under international sponsorship as part of a new initiative aimed at ending the ongoing escalation.
During an online meeting with President of the European Council Antonio Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Aoun urged the international community to support the initiative and help implement its provisions.
According to the proposal presented by Aoun, would begin direct negotiations under international sponsorship to implement a set of security arrangements aimed at restoring stability.
A statement released by Lebanon’s Presidency reported that the initiative calls for establishing a complete truce and halting all Israeli land, air and sea attacks on Lebanon. It also includes providing urgent logistical support to the Lebanese armed forces.
Under the proposal, the Lebanese army would immediately deploy to areas that have recently witnessed tensions, take control of those areas, confiscate weapons, and dismantle arms depots, warehouses, and storage facilities belonging to Hezbollah based on available information.
Aoun also said the rockets fired from Lebanon toward Israel on March 2 were a “trap” set for Lebanon, warning that the incident appeared designed to draw the country into a broader confrontation.
What happened at dawn on March 2, with the launching of a few rockets from Lebanon toward Israel, was an “almost exposed trap and ambush for Lebanon, the Lebanese state, and the Lebanese people,” Aoun said, according to the official National News Agency.
Also on Monday, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz criticized the Lebanese government, saying it had “failed” to meet commitments to disarm Hezbollah.
“It committed to disarming Hezbollah and must act to do so,” he said during a visit to Israel’s Northern Command, where he met senior commanders and reviewed attack plans against Hezbollah forces in Lebanon.
The development came as the region was spiraling into a wider conflict triggered by joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran starting on Feb 28.
Lebanon: 486 killed in strikes
The death toll from Israeli attacks in Lebanon since March 2 has risen to 486, with 1,313 others injured, Lebanon’s Ministry of Public Health said on Monday.
In a statement, the ministry said the casualties were recorded between dawn on March 2 and Monday afternoon, March 9, as Israeli strikes continued across several areas of the country.
Hezbollah announced the launch of rockets from Lebanon toward Israel early Monday for the first time since a ceasefire was declared on Nov 27, 2024, prompting the Lebanese government to announce a ban on its security and military activities.
Meanwhile, the Israeli army launched what it described as an “offensive military campaign” against Hezbollah, carrying out intense airstrikes on multiple Lebanese areas and border ground incursions.
Syria: Artillery shells from Lebanon land near border town
Several artillery shells fired from Lebanese territory landed near the town of Serghaya, west of Damascus, the Syrian state news agency SANA reported Tuesday.
In a statement, Syrian authorities accused the Lebanese Hezbollah group of launching artillery rounds toward Syrian army positions in the area.
Tensions have occasionally flared along the rugged border between Syria and Lebanon, where porous mountain terrain has long served as a corridor for fighters and arms during Syria’s years-long conflict.