Iran has vocally criticized its longtime adversary, Israel, following recent airstrikes in southern Lebanon, a region recognized as a stronghold for its close ally, Hezbollah. Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei issued a statement describing the strikes as a “blatant violation of Lebanon’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
Lebanon reported on Thursday that one person was killed and seven others wounded in the Israeli aerial attacks. In response, the Israeli military confirmed that its operations had targeted Hezbollah and its allied groups.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun strongly denounced the attacks, stating they hit civilian infrastructure and constituted a clear breach of a ceasefire agreement between Hezbollah and Israel, which was negotiated last year.
Tehran serves as Hezbollah’s primary patron. However, the group has faced significant setbacks, notably a weakened state after its most recent clashes with Israel and the recent fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria, which had provided a crucial overland connection to Iran. This series of events has also impacted Iran directly, which itself endured Israeli and US attacks on its nuclear facilities during a 12-day conflict with Israel earlier this year.
Despite a truce between Hezbollah and Israel established in November—following more than a year of intense hostilities that escalated into two months of open warfare—Israel has continued to carry out bombings in Lebanese territory. Baqaei further accused France and the United States, who served as guarantors of the ceasefire, of “continued inaction and appeasement” towards Israel regarding these repeated breaches of the agreement.