Beirut: Lebanese President Joseph Aoun affirmed that the attacks carried out by Israel on the south of the country constitute a fully-fledged crime, indicating that Tel Aviv’s message regarding negotiations “has been received.”

According to National Iraqi News Agency, Aoun stated in a press release: “What Israel did today in southern Lebanon is a fully-fledged crime, not only according to the provisions of international humanitarian law, which criminalizes targeting civilians, terrorizing them, and forcing them to flee their homes, but also a heinous political crime.”

He added: “The more Lebanon expresses its openness to a peaceful negotiation approach to resolve outstanding issues with Israel, the more Israel persists in its aggression against Lebanese sovereignty, boasts of its disregard for Security Council Resolution 1701, and continues to violate its obligations under the cessation of hostilities agreement.” He concluded by saying: “Nearly a year has passed since the ceasefire came into effect, and during that time, Israel has spared no effort to demonstrate its rejection of any negotiated settlement between the two countries. Your message has been received.”