Lebanon to bring complaint to UN Security Council over Israeli killing of its soldier

Beirut says it will file a complaint at the UN Security Council over the recent killing of one of its soldiers in an Israeli attack in southern Lebanon.

Lebanese Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib said he has instructed Lebanon’s mission to the UN to submit the complaint over the Tuesday attack that targeted a Lebanese army center in Odaisseh area, killing a soldier and injuring three others.

Bou Habib said, "Lebanon deeply believes in the importance of adherence to international law and the respect for resolutions issued by the Security Council, while Israel persists in violating Lebanon's sovereignty and attacking it by land, sea, and air, refusing to implement international decisions, especially Resolution 425.”

"Regarding Resolution 1701 issued by the UNSC in 2006, Israel has not fully complied with its content. While the ultimate goal of the resolution is a permanent ceasefire, which Israel deliberately undermines, it continues to daily violate its provisions by assaulting Lebanon's sovereignty by land, sea, and air, consolidating its occupation by annexing Lebanese territories," Lebanon’s LBC International quoted him as saying.

Moreover, he said that "Israeli airstrikes have resulted in casualties and injuries to a large number of civilians, journalists, paramedics, and children, leading to the displacement of more than thirty thousand Lebanese citizens from their homes.”

“The use of internationally prohibited white phosphorus shells by the Israeli army has also caused significant environmental and material damage to civilian areas, in addition to Israel threatening the safety of civil aviation by using Lebanese airspace to attack the sovereignty of a neighboring state," he continued.

Furthermore, Bou Habib emphasized that Lebanon reaffirms its commitment to the full implementation of Resolution 1701 and demands Israel's full compliance with it, which has not been achieved to date.

He also said, “Lebanon is committed to de-escalation and restoring calm along the Blue Line, condemning the targeting of UNIFIL headquarters and personnel."

He pointed out that "the repeated threats of Israeli officials to launch a preemptive war on Lebanon and return it to the Stone Age, in addition to Israel's continuous violation of Resolution 1701 and Lebanese sovereignty, and its refusal since 1948 to implement relevant United Nations resolutions, are all factors that constitute provocations that fuel the conflict and undermine efforts to achieve security and stability."

Israel to be eliminated if it tries to expel Palestinians from Gaza: Senior Hezbollah official

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In a rare statement, the Israeli army on Tuesday expressed regret for killing a Lebanese soldier, claiming it aimed to strike a Hezbollah target.

The Israeli army claimed “the Lebanese army forces were not the target of the attack,” and that “it will be investigated.”

The UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon (UNIFIL) warned on Tuesday about the “rapid and alarming increase” in violence on the border, and recalled that the Lebanese Army “has not entered into conflict with Israel.”

The UNIFIL urged an end to “the cycle of violence, which could lead to devastating consequences for people on both sides.”

France has also condemned shelling by Israel in south Lebanon that killed the Lebanese soldier.

“France condemns the Israeli strike which cost the life of a member of the Lebanese armed forces, and sends its sincere condolences to the victim’s relatives,” a French foreign ministry spokesperson said in a daily briefing.

Lebanon’s resistance movement Hezbollah and Israel have been exchanging fire since early October, shortly after the regime launched its war on the besieged Gaza Strip following a surprise Hamas operation into the Israeli-occupied territories.

Since the exchanges began, more than 110 people have been killed on the Lebanese side, including more than a dozen civilians, according to an AFP tally.

Hezbollah has said that 79 of its members have been killed since the war’s outbreak in southern Lebanon.

The fighting has displaced tens of thousands from the northern part of the Israeli-occupied territories, which have been pummeled by rocket fire and shelling carried out by Hezbollah and allied Palestinian groups.

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