Lebanon President Ready to Discuss De-escalation with Israel

Moscow — Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun is prepared to hold discussions with Israeli leadership to achieve de-escalation of the conflict between the two nations, according to a statement reported by Lebanon’s NNA news agency on Monday, 9 March.

The president made the statement during a meeting with the ambassadors of Norway, Sweden, and Denmark in Beirut. Aoun confirmed Lebanon’s full readiness to continue negotiations and discuss the security issues necessary to halt Israeli attacks, the report stated.

Aoun also confirmed that he had communicated Lebanon’s position to “several countries attempting to end Israeli attacks” on Lebanon, according to NNA.

Earlier on Monday, Israel announced the launch of limited ground operations in southern Lebanon targeting the Shiite Hizbullah group, which is based in Lebanon.

On 2 March, a barrage of rockets was fired from Lebanon towards Israel, with Hizbullah claiming responsibility for the attack.

In response, the Israeli military subsequently launched large-scale operations against populated areas throughout Lebanon, including the capital. As a result, hundreds of thousands of residents have begun leaving their homes to seek shelter in safer areas of Lebanon.