A lawmaker for Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran and is sworn to Israel\u2019s destruction, castigated the direct talks and vowed to continue \u201cresistance\u201d against Israeli troops\u2019 presence in the south of the country. He also vowed that his terror group would not lay down its weapons, something both Israel and the Lebanese government have demanded.<\/p>\n
In an interview with AFP, Hezbollah lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah said, \u201cWe will bring down this yellow line through the resistance,\u201d meaning military action. The \u201cyellow line\u201d refers to the parts of Lebanon that Israel controls.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe attempt by the Israeli army to establish a buffer zone, under the title of a defensive line, a yellow line, a green line, and a red line,\u201d he added, \u201call these lines will be broken, and we will not accept any of them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fadlallah also vowed that \u201cno one in Lebanon or abroad will be able to disarm the resistance.\u201d<\/p>\n
But Lebanese President Joseph Aoun stood by the negotiations, saying he hoped they would \u201csave\u201d his country.<\/p>\n
\u201cLebanon is facing two options: either the continuation of the war, with all its humanitarian, social, economic, and sovereign repercussions, or negotiations to put an end to this war and achieve lasting stability,\u201d he said. \u201cI have chosen negotiations, and I am full of hope that we will be able to save Lebanon.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t Aoun said that the talks with Israel are separate from US negotiations with Iran, and are meant to stop Israeli operations, end the Israel Defense Forces\u2019 presence in Lebanon, and allow the Lebanese Armed Forces to deploy along the border.<\/p>\n He stressed that Lebanon\u2019s negotiating team will be headed by Karam, who will not be replaced \u2014 a reference to domestic fights over the makeup of the country\u2019s delegation. Karam represented Lebanon when Lebanese and Israeli officials met in the border town of Naqoura in December.<\/p>\n US President Donald Trump expressed support for Lebanon\u2019s aims in a Thursday phone call, said Aoun. He did not indicate whether he was planning to meet with Trump or Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the near future.<\/p>\n Aoun\u2019s moves on Monday came after a forceful address to the nation Friday night in which he said, \u201cWe negotiate for ourselves\u2026 We are no longer a pawn in anyone\u2019s game, nor an arena for anyone\u2019s wars, and we never will be again.\u201d<\/p>\n \t Hezbollah began attacking Israel on March 2, days after the beginning of the US-Israeli war with its sponsor Iran. Israel responded with heavy airstrikes and by expanding its troops\u2019 presence deeper into Lebanon.<\/p>\n Conflict has simmered since the ceasefire took effect on Friday. Two IDF soldiers have been killed by Hezbollah explosives, and the IDF has struck Hezbollah, which accuses it of violating the truce.<\/p>\n Hezbollah took responsibility for an explosive device that detonated on an IDF armored vehicle in southern Lebanon on Sunday. In a statement, the terror group said that a convoy of eight Israeli armored vehicles driving between Taybeh and Deir Siryan was hit by a \u201cseries of explosive devices planted earlier\u201d by its operatives.<\/p>\n The military, in response to a query, confirmed that one armored vehicle was \u201clikely hit by an explosive device,\u201d and that no injuries were caused. It was investigating the incident.<\/p>\n \t A senior Hezbollah-allied politician said on Monday, meanwhile, that Israeli forces had carried out varying degrees of destruction in 39 villages in southern Lebanon since the ceasefire began.<\/p>\n Ali Hassan Khalil, a top aide to parliament speaker Berri, said the powerful explosions set off by Israeli forces had destroyed civilian homes in the south and that it amounted to \u201ca clear war crime.\u201d<\/p>\n Lebanese Energy Minister Joe Saddi also told Reuters on Monday that a map published by the Israeli military showing a \u201cnaval forward defense area\u201d extending from the Lebanese coastline into the sea did not impact the maritime border agreed between the two countries in 2022.<\/p>\n \u201cFrom a legal point of view, this map doesn\u2019t change anything about the fact that there is a maritime border agreement,\u201d he said. \u201cVery simply, the agreement is in effect and nothing is changing.\u201d<\/p>\n
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\n\t\tLebanon\u2019s President Joseph Aoun delivers a televised address to the Lebanese people from the Baabda Presidential Palace, east of the capital Beirut, on April 17, 2026. (Lebanese Presidency)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/AFP__20250109__36TC836__v3__HighRes__LebanonPoliticsVotePresident-e1736533816756-640x400.jpg\")
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\n\t\tLebanon\u2019s Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri chairs a parliamentary session to elect a president, in Beirut, Lebanon, on January 9, 2025. (Anwar Amro \/ AFP)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/c9a09736-cdb9-4506-939b-ffbdd7c32f5d-e1776674521662-640x400.jpg\")
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\n\t\tTroops of the 162nd Division operate in southern Lebanon, in a handout photo issued on April 19, 2026. (Israel Defense Forces)<\/p>\n
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