Hezbollah

Lebanese PM, speaker urge clear timetable for Israeli withdrawal

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A view from Christian-majority border towns of Kawkaba and Ebel as-Saqi in the Marjayoun and Hasbaya districts of Lebanon on July 06, 2026. [Ramiz Dallah – Anadolu Agency]

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri discussed the military track of the negotiation framework and developments in southern Lebanon with US officials on Friday, Anadolu reports.

The Lebanese Presidency of the Council of Ministers said in a statement that Salam received US Ambassador to Beirut Michel Issa and Gen. Joseph Clearfield, head of the military coordination group for Lebanon.

The meeting addressed the military track of the negotiation framework, along with the latest developments in southern Lebanon, the presidency added.

“Salam stressed the need for Israel to stop destruction operations, expand the scope of pilot areas, and set a clear timetable for Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory,” the statement said.

In a related development, Berri met in Beirut with the US ambassador and Clearfield, his office said.

According to a statement from Berri’s office, the meeting discussed conditions in southern Lebanon and the group’s work following the start of identifying “pilot areas,” as well as the mechanism for verifying an Israeli withdrawal and deploying the Lebanese army.

“Israel has not stopped its violations and attacks on Lebanon,” Berri said, pointing to the continued destruction of villages, bulldozing of fields and agricultural areas, burning of forested areas, and targeting of heritage sites.

READ: Lebanon banker exposed as major force behind normalisation drive with Israel

“The key to stability remains forcing Israel to stop its war and withdraw to the international border,” Berri added.

After the meeting, the US ambassador described the atmosphere as “positive.”

Issa told reporters that negotiations between Lebanon and Israel “will continue,” without specifying a date for the next round, according to the statement.

Discussions on expanding the “pilot areas” would follow an evaluation of the current areas, while consultations were still ongoing on countries that would participate in the monitoring mechanism, he added.

On Thursday, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Tel Aviv would not withdraw from Lebanon unless Hezbollah is disarmed.

Speaking at a ceremony, Katz said the Israeli army currently controls 700 square kilometers of Lebanese territory, about 7% of Lebanon’s total area, according to Israel’s Channel 7.

On Wednesday, a US State Department official said a permanent Israeli military presence in southern Lebanon would contradict commitments included in the framework agreement and would not serve peace.

Israel has continued its assault on Lebanon since March 2, killing 4,335 people and injuring 12,277 others, while displacing more than 1 million, according to Lebanese authorities.

Israel occupies areas in southern Lebanon, some for decades and others since the previous war between 2023 and 2024. During the current assault, it has advanced more than 10 kilometers into Lebanese territory.

READ: Israeli army attacks southern Lebanon, demolishes buildings despite framework deal

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UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham admits to blatently lying and engaging in deception to become leader of the UK Labour Party and Prime Minister.
UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham admits to blatently lying and engaging in deception to become leader of the UK Labour Party and Prime Minister.
Donald Trump sings and dances, says that it's fun to kill everyone ... unless he gets distracted or falls asleep.
Donald Trump sings and dances, says that it’s fun to kill everyone … unless he gets distracted or falls asleep.
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says Sundown Syndrome is a dead givaway and he wishes someone would Lock Him Up
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says Sundown Syndrome is a dead givaway and he wishes someone would Lock Him Up

UK signs $22M agreement to support Lebanese army, security forces

Continue ReadingLebanese PM, speaker urge clear timetable for Israeli withdrawal

Hezbollah leader rejects Lebanon-Israel Framework Agreement, says ‘not a single clause will pass’

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A screen grab from a video shows Hezbollah Secretary General Naim Qassem in Beirut, Lebanon on October 30, 2024. [Stringer – Anadolu Agency]

Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem on Wednesday rejected the framework agreement signed between Lebanon and Israel, declaring that it would not be implemented and urging the Lebanese government to abandon it.

Speaking during a public address held alongside memorial events for Iran’s late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Qassem argued that the agreement serves Israeli interests and lacks legal and national legitimacy.

“Not a single clause of this agreement will pass, and you will be powerless to stop it,” Qassem said, addressing Lebanese authorities.

He credited Hezbollah’s military resilience and Iran’s support with securing the ceasefire in Lebanon, describing them as the two pillars behind what he called the resistance’s achievements.

Qassem also reaffirmed Hezbollah’s strategic relationship with Iran, saying the partnership strengthens Lebanon, while sharply criticising the United States. He accused Washington of exercising undue influence over Lebanon and claimed that US policies primarily serve Israeli interests.

READ: Lebanon conditions participation in Rome talks on Israeli withdrawal from two areas in the south

Turning to the framework agreement, Qassem argued that it was negotiated in Israel’s favour and accused the United States of facilitating its terms. He criticised the document’s reported use of the term “redeployment” rather than “withdrawal,” claiming it implied continued Israeli control over parts of Lebanese territory.

Qassem also cited continued Israeli military operations in Lebanon, referring to what he described as hundreds of ceasefire violations, including a recent strike in Nabatieh that reportedly killed a school principal, her mother and two employees traveling in a civilian vehicle.

He called on the Lebanese government to withdraw from the agreement, arguing that abandoning it would help preserve national unity rather than deepen political divisions.

“The framework agreement is entirely in Israel’s interest,” he said. “Throw it away and discard it.”

His remarks come as debate continues within Lebanon over the framework agreement and its implications for the country’s security, sovereignty and future relations with Israel.

OPINION: Lebanon’s Faustian bargain: The mirage of the trilateral framework

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Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel's genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism "without qualification". Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Donald Trump calls for help from NATO allies in securing the Straight of Hormuz despite saying only 9 days ago that they don't need people to join wars after they've already won.
Donald Trump calls for help from NATO allies in securing the Straight of Hormuz despite saying only 9 days ago that they don’t need people to join wars after they’ve already won.
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says Sundown Syndrome is a dead givaway and he wishes someone would Lock Him Up
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says Sundown Syndrome is a dead givaway and he wishes someone would Lock Him Up

Continue ReadingHezbollah leader rejects Lebanon-Israel Framework Agreement, says ‘not a single clause will pass’

Lebanon says direct damage from Israeli war estimated at $3-4 billion

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A view of the destruction as Lebanese residents return to their homes following the agreement reached between the U.S. and Iran in Nabatieh, Lebanon on June 15, 2026. [Houssam Shbaro – Anadolu Agency]

Lebanese Information Minister Paul Morcos said Monday direct material damage from Israel’s war on Lebanon is estimated at between $3-4 billion, Anadolu reports.

Speaking following a ministerial meeting, Morcos said the figures are preliminary and do not include economic losses or indirect damage, according to the state news agency NNA.

The estimates come as the Israeli army continues daily violations of a US-mediated framework agreement signed with Beirut.

On Monday, Israeli forces blew up homes and carried out explosions in two towns in southern Lebanon, and detonated explosives overnight in the town of Houla in Marjayoun district.

Morcos said Monday’s ministerial meeting discussed the results of field visits by ministers to southern villages and towns, including ways to support the return of residents to their areas and provide proper shelter.

The ministers also discussed supporting the needs of municipalities and local economic sectors to help residents return, ahead of the launch of reconstruction efforts, he said.

READ: Netanyahu denies Trump restricted Israeli strikes in Lebanon

On May 26, Lebanon and Israel signed a framework agreement under US mediation, which provides for a phased Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory.

The agreement, however, does not set a timetable for a full withdrawal and links further pullbacks to the Lebanese army assuming security responsibilities and the disarmament of non-state armed groups, including Hezbollah.

Lebanese officials said the agreement represented a “first step” toward restoring state sovereignty over all its territory and allowing displaced people to return to their towns.

Hezbollah, however, called the agreement “null and void,” saying that linking Israeli withdrawal to its disarmament crossed “all red lines.”

Since March 2, Israeli attacks in Lebanon have killed more than 4,300 people and injured over 12,000 others, according to official figures.

Israeli forces also continue to occupy areas in southern Lebanon, some held for decades and others seized during the 2023-2024 war, while advancing more than 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) into Lebanese territory during the latest offensive.

READ: Lebanon says 400,000 displaced people have returned south as government prepares reconstruction plan

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Keir Starmer explains that UK is participating defensively in Trump and Israel's criminal war for Israel's genocidal expansion in Iran and states that he supports Zionism "without qualification". Keir Starmer said "I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Keir Starmer explains that UK is participating defensively in Trump and Israel’s criminal war for Israel’s genocidal expansion in Iran and states that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says disinhibition and swearing are typical and common symptoms
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says disinhibition and swearing are typical and common symptoms

Continue ReadingLebanon says direct damage from Israeli war estimated at $3-4 billion

Israeli documents undermine claim Iran and Hezbollah helped plan 7 October attack

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Hamas’ armed wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades hold a Palestinian flag as they destroy a tank of Israeli forces in Gaza City, Gaza on October 07, 2023. [Hani Alshaer – Anadolu Agency]

Secret Hamas documents summarised by the Israeli site OSINT613 appear to undermine one of Israel’s central narratives about 7 October: that the attack was a closely coordinated operation planned with Iran and Hezbollah.

The documents, first revealed by Israel Army Radio correspondent Doron Kadosh and analysed by the Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center, were presented by Israeli sources as evidence of years of contact between Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran. However, the same material indicates that neither Hezbollah nor Iran was informed in advance of the timing or operational launch of the 7 October attack. 

According to the Israeli site OSINT613, Hamas had spent years seeking a broader multi-front confrontation with Israel and repeatedly tried to persuade Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah to join a simultaneous attack from Lebanon. Hamas also sought support from Iran, while internal documents described intelligence sharing and strategic discussions involving Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran’s Revolutionary Guards during earlier rounds of fighting. 

Yet the documents point to a major gap between Hamas’s expectations and the reality on 7 October. OSINT613 reported that, immediately after the attack began at 6:29am, Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar sent an urgent message to Nasrallah apologising for not informing him in advance and asking Hezbollah to intervene through rocket fire and a major ground offensive. Sinwar’s apology for the lack of prior notice is seen as a strong indication that Hezbollah was not operationally informed before the attack was launched. 

The requested ground offensive never came. Hezbollah later opened a northern front with rockets, missiles and drones, but it did not send its Radwan Force into the Galilee as Hamas had expected. According to the Israeli account, this failure to launch a simultaneous northern assault fundamentally changed the scale of the conflict and prevented a wider coordinated attack on northern Israel. 

The Israeli report also indicate that Hamas did not expect Iran to enter the war directly. Instead, it envisaged Hezbollah and other Iran-aligned groups opening additional fronts while Tehran remained in the background. This detail complicates Israeli claims that Iran directly managed or jointly executed the 7 October operation. 

READ: Israel’s 7 October narrative under fresh scrutiny after army accused of deleting footage

The documents do show that Hamas had sought a wider regional war. In 2019, Ismail Haniyeh reportedly wrote to Nasrallah seeking closer military coordination, while a similar message was sent to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. During Israel’s 2021 assault on Gaza, Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran’s Revolutionary Guards reportedly established a joint intelligence operations room in Beirut, with Hezbollah providing intelligence on Israeli troop movements, air operations and surveillance. 

However, the most important revelations undermines the Israeli claims that 7 October attack was a tightly coordinated regional operation. Hamas appears to have believed that Hezbollah would join a future “great strategic battle”, but internal Hamas assessments also warned that Hezbollah remained hesitant about entering a full-scale war with Israel. OSINT613 reported that Hamas intelligence documents described Hezbollah as facing a “psychological barrier”, an apparent reference to its hesitancy after the 2006 Lebanon war. 

Nasrallah’s own reported response to Hamas’s proposal also suggests hesitation. According to the documents, he questioned what Hamas’s strategic objective would be and asked whether the goal was to force Israel’s collapse or merely prevent incursions into Al-Aqsa Mosque. Hamas reportedly acknowledged that it had not fully defined its objectives. 

Analysts have argued that Israel’s insistence on linking Iran directly to the 7 October attack served a wider political purpose: to internationalise the assault on Gaza, frame the war as part of a broader confrontation with Tehran and push Washington towards a more aggressive regional posture. Israeli officials repeatedly invoked Iran and its allies even when the connection was out of context, reflecting a long-standing Israeli effort to draw the US into direct confrontation with the Islamic Republic. 

The Israeli-sourced documents now appear to undercut that propaganda line. While they show that Hamas maintained contacts with Iran and Hezbollah, they also suggest that neither Tehran nor Hezbollah had prior operational knowledge of the 7 October attack.

READ: Why Israel has kept peddling the false narrative of Iran involvement in the October attack

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Keir Starmer explains that UK is participating defensively in Trump and Israel's criminal war for Israel's genocidal expansion in Iran and states that he supports Zionism "without qualification". Keir Starmer said "I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Keir Starmer explains that UK is participating defensively in Trump and Israel’s criminal war for Israel’s genocidal expansion in Iran and states that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says disinhibition and swearing are typical and common symptoms
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says disinhibition and swearing are typical and common symptoms

Continue ReadingIsraeli documents undermine claim Iran and Hezbollah helped plan 7 October attack

Israeli army chief threatens Lebanon with ‘swift offensive’ from occupied Beaufort Castle

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Chief of the General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces Eyal Zamir (C) conducts a field tour with senior commanders of the Israeli army. [Israel Defense Forces (IDF) – Anadolu Agency]

Israeli Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir on Sunday threatened Lebanon with a “swift offensive” in the event of any violation of an ongoing ceasefire agreement, during a field visit to the occupied Beaufort Castle in southern Lebanon, Anadolu reports.

In a statement, the Israeli army said Zamir toured forces stationed in the Beaufort area, known in Arabic as Qalaat al-Shaqif, alongside senior military commanders.

During the visit, Zamir called for transitioning to a “swift offensive” if the ceasefire agreement is breached.

The statement quoted him as describing Beaufort Castle as a “strategic point dominating its surroundings” and claimed the area was “full of terrorist infrastructure.”

Ignoring Israel’s near-daily violations of the ceasefire, Zamir also urged the Lebanese army to fulfill its commitments and work to remove Hezbollah fighters from the area.

He further claimed that Hezbollah had built, with Iranian funding and direction, “extensive tunnel systems and underground infrastructure” over decades to threaten northern Israeli settlements.

READ: Israeli army ends Givati Brigade mission in southern Lebanon after 8 months

There was no immediate response from Lebanese authorities on Zamir’s threat or his field visit.

In late May, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz announced that Israeli forces had taken control of Beaufort Castle, in the deepest push into Lebanese territory since 2,000.

Hezbollah, however, said at the time that the site had been “free of any military resistance” when Israeli forces entered it, accusing Israel of occupying the area for propaganda purposes.

Beaufort Castle is one of southern Lebanon’s most prominent strategic landmarks. Israeli forces withdrew from the site in 2000.

The latest threat comes despite a framework agreement signed between Lebanon and Israel on June 26 under US mediation, which aims to end the conflict and address its root causes.

Since March 2, 2026, Israeli military operations in Lebanon have killed at least 4,303 people and injured 12,202 others, according to Lebanese authorities, while displacing more than one million.

READ: Israel’s Ben-Gvir to skip UN police summit in New York amid legal pressure: Reports

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Experiencing issues with this image not appearing. I suspect because it's so critical of Zionist Keir Starmer's support of and complicity in Israel's genocides.
Genocide denier and Current UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is quoted that he supports Zionism without qualification. He also confirms that UK air force support has been essential in Israel’s mass-murdering genocide. Includes URLs https://www.declassifieduk.org/keir-starmers-100-spy-flights-over-gaza-in-support-of-israel/ and https://youtu.be/O74hZCKKdpA

Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel's genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism "without qualification". Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says he wishes someone would lock him up, small Orca speaks bluntly.
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says he wishes someone would lock him up, small Orca speaks bluntly.

Continue ReadingIsraeli army chief threatens Lebanon with ‘swift offensive’ from occupied Beaufort Castle