Beirut [Lebanon], April 18 : Lebanese President Joseph Aoun has issued a strong "Lebanon first" message, widely seen as an indirect criticism of Hezbollah, while reiterating that the state alone will determine national decisions and priorities, Al Jazeera reported.
Aoun, without naming the group, appeared to suggest that Hezbollah was effectively fighting Iran's war on Lebanese territory. "I will not allow after today for one Lebanese person to die... for the interests of others or the calculations of near or far axes. Between suicide and prosperity, our people and I are with prosperity and against suicide," he said, as per Al Jazeera.
The Lebanese president stressed that diplomatic engagement, including negotiations with Israel, would continue despite criticism. He also underscored that Lebanon would not compromise on sovereignty. The path of negotiations with Israel will continue despite the criticism and attacks against the talks, but he pledged that the state will not give up one grain of Lebanese soil, he said, according to Al Jazeera.
As per Al Jazeera, Aoun's remarks were viewed as being directed at Hezbollah's support base in southern Lebanon, even as the group continues to maintain significant influence in the region. The area has witnessed repeated displacement and military tensions, with the Lebanese army and Hezbollah operating under different circumstances during Israeli advances.
According to accounts from the ground, residents in the south have seen Lebanese army positions evacuated as Israeli forces advanced, while Hezbollah fighters remained engaged in confrontations. At the same time, many communities in the south, which have faced repeated Israeli strikes since 1948, do not view resistance as tied to external agendas but as a matter of local survival, Al Jazeera reported.
Critics of Hezbollah argue that the group destabilised years of relative calm in southern Lebanon by opening a "support front" for Gaza in October 2023 and further escalating tensions with rocket fire into Israel. Supporters, however, reject this narrative and insist the response was driven by regional developments and security concerns, as reported by Al Jazeera.
Aoun also framed a recent ceasefire as a diplomatic achievement for Lebanon, expressing appreciation for international support. In contrast, Hezbollah has maintained that Iran played a central role in pressuring an end to Israeli bombardment, highlighting continuing divisions over the narrative of the conflict, Al Jazeera reported.
These competing interpretations underline the deep political divide within Lebanon, which is expected to persist even after the ceasefire, further complicating the country's fragile stability, as per Al Jazeera.
In a separate development, Lebanon's President Joseph Aoun held a phone call with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, during which he thanked the United Kingdom for its support to Beirut, Al Jazeera reported.
"Lebanon is facing a new phase and an opportunity to consolidate security and stability and extend the authority of the state over all its territories," Aoun's office quoted him as telling Starmer, as per Al Jazeera.
The British prime minister, for his part, expressed condolences over the victims of Israeli attacks on Lebanon and reaffirmed London's readiness to provide humanitarian assistance and support to the Lebanese army under existing cooperation agreements, according to Al Jazeera.
Separately, Aoun reaffirmed Lebanon's sovereign decision-making and defended the government's decision to engage in direct talks with Israel following deadly Israeli military strikes.
"These negotiations are not weakness. They are not a retreat. They are not a concession. They are a decision stemming from the strength in our belief in our rights and care for our people, and our responsibility to protect our country by all means possible," he said in a televised address, Al Jazeera reported.
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