Hezbollah chief tells Arab nations to 'unite against common enemy' Israel

Naim Qassem speaks after Israel escalates attacks on Lebanon, killing two people

An Israel strike hits buildings in the town of Kfar Tibnit, southern Lebanon. EPA

Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem invited Saudi Arabia and other Arab nations to “unite against our common enemy” in a speech on Friday hours after Israel escalated its attacks on south Lebanon, killing two people.

Hours after Friday's strikes, Mr Qassem called on Arab countries to engage in a dialogue that "addresses the issues, answers the concerns, and secures the interests" of Arab nations.

At least two people died and several were wounded in Israeli drone strikes on vehicles in the southern Lebanese villages of Tebnine and Ansar, a day after Israel attacked alleged Hezbollah infrastructure in five other villages in the region.

Israel has continued to strike southern Lebanon despite a truce signed in November that ended more than a year of hostilities and two months of open war with Hezbollah. It continues to occupy five locations in southern Lebanon that it deems strategic, instead of fully withdrawing under the terms of the ceasefire.

The Israeli leadership has also sparked outrage and concern around the Middle East by stepping up its offensive in Gaza, brushing aside the desperate humanitarian conditions there, and launching an unprecedented air strike on Qatar this month.

"The only way to stand up to Israel is through solidarity against the common enemy," Mr Qassem said in a televised speech to commemorate the death of Hezbollah commander Ibrahim Aqil last year.

"The weapons of the resistance [Hezbollah] are directed at the Israeli enemy, not Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, or any other place or entity in the world."

He also called on Lebanon to develop a "national security strategy".

Lebanon's Health Ministry said one person was killed in the air strike in Tebnine, which hit a car outside the government hospital there. It later announced that another person was killed in a strike on a vehicle in Ansar.

On Thursday, Israeli strikes destroyed buildings in the villages of Mais Al Jabal, Debbin, Burj Qalawiya, Al Shahabiya and Kfar Tbnit. The Israeli military warned residents to leave the area before the attacks, causing civilians to flee in panic.

One person was wounded in the strike on Mais Al Jabal, a border town that was heavily damaged in the war last year.

The Israeli military said it struck several weapons storage facilities belonging to Hezbollah's elite Radwan force. It said it would “continue to operate to eliminate any threat” to Israel.

In Gaza, official Palestinian media reported several people being killed in Israeli air strikes on Friday. Israel closed a temporary escape route from Gaza city via the Salah Al Din Road, saying it planned to operate with "unprecedented force". Reports said Israel also detained an imam at Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.

Emergency services arrive after Israeli strikes on the southern Lebanese village of Kfar Tibnit. AFP

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun condemned Thursday's attacks and “the silence of the countries who had sponsored” the ceasefire, which he said “encourages further aggression”.

“The time has come to put an immediate end to these blatant violations of Lebanon's sovereignty,” he said.

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam has called for “maximum pressure” on Israel to stop its attacks on his country.

The UN peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon said the Israeli strikes breached Security Council Resolution 1701, which serves as a basis for the November ceasefire. The attacks put the “fragile stability” at risk, Unifil added.

“They further undermine civilians’ confidence that a non-violent solution to this conflict is possible,” it said in a statement published on X.

The strikes prompted peacekeepers in two positions in Deir Kifa, near Burj Qalawiya, to seek shelter, it said. “The strikes put the lives of Lebanese soldiers, UN peacekeepers and civilians in danger,” Unifil added. It also called on the Israeli military to refrain from any further strikes and to fully withdraw from Lebanese territory.

The strikes came a day after Hezbollah commemorated a year since Israel blew up hundreds of booby-trapped pagers and walkie-talkies used by its members, killing dozens and wounding thousands.

Israel and Hezbollah had already been engaged in cross-border fighting for nearly a year before the pager attack, which was one of a series of blows that drastically weakened the Iran-backed group.

Under US pressure, Beirut has ordered the Lebanese army to draw up a plan to disarm Hezbollah in southern areas near the Israeli border by the end of the year.

Foreign Minister Youssef Rajji said last week that Lebanon's army would fully disarm the Iran-backed group near the border within three months.

But the army, which said Thursday's strikes increased the number of Israel's ceasefire violations to 4,500, added that the attacks risk slowing down Hezbollah's disarmament.

“These assaults and violations obstruct the army's deployment in the south, and their continuation will hinder the implementation of its plan starting from the area south of the Litani River,” the army said.

Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah said “the renewed Israeli aggression on southern villages will not push our people to surrender or abandon their land”.