Following a deadly Israeli drone strike in southern Lebanon that claimed the lives of five individuals, including three young children, Lebanon is intensifying its appeal for increased support from the United States. This incident marks the latest in a series of near-daily breaches by Israel of the US-mediated ceasefire agreement established in November 2024.
President Joseph Aoun, alongside other senior officials, convened with a delegation led by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, according to a statement released by the Lebanese presidency on Tuesday.
During the meeting, President Aoun urged Secretary Rubio to ensure Israel adheres strictly to the ceasefire terms with Hezbollah, the armed Lebanese faction, as Israeli military actions against Lebanon persist.
Aoun also expressed his demand for Israel to end its occupation of Lebanese territories. He highlighted Lebanon’s intention to enhance its military capabilities through the acquisition of “equipment and supplies” from the United States and sought Washington’s backing to organize a conference focused on Lebanon’s reconstruction efforts.
In the context of ongoing attempts to disarm Hezbollah, the Lebanese president underscored that the Lebanese army’s jurisdiction encompasses “all Lebanese regions.” He emphasized the country’s pursuit of a “just, comprehensive, and enduring peace” throughout the Middle East.
President Aoun is slated to address the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, where he is anticipated to condemn Israeli military operations across the region, including those in Gaza and Lebanon.
Despite mounting pressure from Israel, the United States, the Lebanese government, and Saudi Arabia to disarm, Hezbollah remains steadfast in its refusal to relinquish its weapons, even after the assassination of several of its top political and military leaders during the Gaza conflict.
Last week, Hezbollah’s Secretary-General Naim Qassem made a direct appeal to Saudi Arabia, urging reconciliation and unity against Israel. In his speech, he asserted that the Iran-supported “resistance” coalition should not be viewed as the adversary.
Meanwhile, Lebanese civilians, especially those in the southern regions, continue to bear the brunt of the conflict.
On Tuesday, a funeral was held for a family tragically killed in the Israeli drone strike on a vehicle in Bint Jbeil two days prior. The victims included a father and his three children, two of whom were one-and-a-half-year-old twins. The mother and another daughter were also in the vehicle and remain critically injured in hospital.
The Israeli military acknowledged civilian casualties in the attack but maintained that the primary target was a fifth individual killed, alleged to be a Hezbollah operative-a justification frequently cited without concrete evidence for strikes in Lebanon.
The Israeli army stated that the “terrorist operated within a civilian area,” a common rationale used to defend attacks that often result in civilian deaths, while also claiming these actions contradict the “understandings between Israel and Lebanon.”
Lebanon’s parliament speaker and veteran Amal movement leader Nabih Berri identified the three children-Celine, Hadi, and Aseel-and their father as US citizens.
However, a spokesperson from the US State Department refuted this, clarifying that they were not US citizens, though one had previously held an unused immigrant visa petition.
President Aoun and other senior Lebanese officials condemned the killings as a “fresh massacre” that must be halted immediately.
Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, formerly president of the International Court of Justice, accused Israel of attempting to intimidate Lebanese civilians who are returning to their largely devastated villages and towns in southern Lebanon.
On Tuesday morning, Lebanon’s National News Agency reported that Israeli forces fired from a military position in the occupied Shebaa Farms toward the outskirts of Kfarchouba, a town repeatedly targeted during the conflict. No injuries were reported.
The previous day, the agency noted that an Israeli drone deployed a sound bomb near civilians engaged in clearing debris from their homes, which had been destroyed by Israeli military operations, in Maroun al-Ras, southern Lebanon.
