ASIATODAY.ID, CAIRO – Lebanon is in a state of war due to threats and aggression from Israel, Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister, Najib Mikati, said.
“The threats we see are a kind of psychological warfare. The question that is on everyone’s lips ‘Is it a war?’ Yes, we are in a state of war. Due to Israeli aggression, there are a large number of civilian and non-civilian casualties and destroyed villages,” Mikati said in a statement on Saturday.
On June 18, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced that it had approved operational plans for an offensive in Lebanon. Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz later said that Israel was “very close” to a decision to “change the rules” against Hezbollah and Lebanon, threatening to destroy the movement “in an all-out war” and to “severely hit” Lebanon. Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah said that the movement could invade northern Israel if the confrontation intensifies further.
The situation on the Israeli-Lebanese border worsened after the start of Israel’s military operations in the Gaza Strip in October 2023. The IDF and Lebanese Hezbollah fighters fire at each other’s positions in areas along the border on a daily basis. The Lebanese Foreign Ministry said that around 100,000 people had to leave their homes in border areas, while the Israeli Foreign Ministry said that 80,000 Israelis had to do the same.
Seven countries ask their citizens to leave Lebanon
Seven countries have asked their citizens to leave Lebanon amid fears of a full-scale war between Israel and the Hezbollah group, while five other countries have advised their citizens not to travel to Lebanon at this time.
Saudi Arabia’s embassy in Beirut on Saturday urged its citizens currently in Lebanon “to leave Lebanese territory immediately” and stressed the importance for them “to remain in touch with the embassy in case of emergency.”
Australia on Friday “strongly advised” its citizens not to travel to Lebanon, citing the highly unstable security situation. Foreign Minister Penny Wong urged Australians in Lebanon to leave the country immediately while commercial flights are still available.
Meanwhile, the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs wrote to X urging its citizens to avoid traveling to Lebanon and those living in the country to leave the region while commercial flights are still operating.
The German Foreign Ministry also issued a travel ban warning to Lebanon for its citizens and those in the country to leave immediately while stressing that “the situation on the Israel-Lebanon border is very fragile.”
In addition, Canada, North Macedonia and Kuwait have banned their citizens from traveling to Lebanon due to the deteriorating security situation in the country and asked those living there to leave immediately.
On June 5, the United States Embassy in Beirut advised its citizens in Lebanon not to travel to areas along the Israeli and Syrian borders.
Apart from the US, Britain, Ireland and Jordan have banned their citizens from traveling to Lebanon due to the deteriorating security situation in the country amid increasing tensions between Israel and the Hezbollah group.
Meanwhile, Russian Ambassador to Lebanon Alexander Rudakov asked his country’s citizens to wait until the situation returns to normal, stressing that there is currently “no reason to panic”, adding that the diplomatic mission continues to operate normally and takes necessary security measures for its employees. (Sputnik/AT Network)
Follow Us at Google News and WA Channel