Lebanese president to Netanyahu: War will not bring security or peace
BEIRUT, Lebanon, July 13 (UPI) -- Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said Monday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu must realize war will not achieve security or peace.
And he expressed hope that this week's new round of negotiations between the two countries will pave the way for the start of the Israeli withdrawal and the deployment of the Lebanese Army in southern Lebanon.
Aoun also said he will ask U.S. President Donald Trump, with whom he is scheduled to meet in Washington on July 21, to exert "the necessary pressure" on Israel to implement the U.S.-brokered framework agreement reached by the Lebanese and Israeli negotiating teams June 26.
The preliminary accord provides for a phased Israeli withdrawal from occupied parts of southern Lebanon to allow the Lebanese Army to deploy and "restore effective sovereign authority," beginning with its deployment in two initial pilot zones.
The core of the deal is Hezbollah's disarmament and the dismantling of its military infrastructure, with the Lebanese Army set to launch its mission in the designated pilot zones. If the plan is successfully implemented, displaced residents would be allowed to return and reconstruction could begin, paving the way for further Israeli withdrawals.
That could eventually lead to an end to the state of war and military conflict between the two countries and establishment of lasting peace.
A U.S. military team has held coordination meetings with the Lebanese Army over the past two days to discuss military procedures and preparations for the first two designated pilot zones, which include the towns of Froun, Ghandourieh, Zawtar al-Gharbieh and Zawtar al-Sharqieh in the central sector of southern Lebanon near the strategic Litani River.
Speaking during meetings with local and foreign visiting delegations, including Nelson Mandela's The Elders group, Aoun said he will explain to Trump the situation in Lebanon and stressed the importance of taking advantage of the current U.S. administration's desire to achieve peace in the region.
"The Israeli Prime Minister must realize that war will not achieve security and that any stability can only be attained through understanding and consensus," he said in an official statement. "Israel must change its approach if it truly seeks to ensure security and peace for its people and stability for the region."
He warned that continuing the war will only lead to more killing, destruction and displacement, arguing that Israel destroyed Gaza and launched several wars against Lebanon without achieving its objectives.
Aoun said the June 26 "framework agreement" represents "the best available option" to end the war that started when Hezbollah opened a support front for Gaza on Oct. 8, 2023, and to ensure the withdrawal of Israeli forces from occupied Lebanese territory.
He expressed hope that the two-day negotiations with Israel, which will begin Tuesday in Rome, would achieve "tangible and practical steps on the ground," paving the way for the start of the Israeli withdrawal and the deployment of the Lebanese Army in the areas to be vacated.
Aoun took the risky decision to engage in direct negotiations with Israel in an attempt to end the devastating war, which has exacted a staggering cost: Israel has reoccupied parts of southern Lebanon -- previously liberated in 2000 largely due to Hezbollah's resistance -- reduced more than 70 villages to ruins and inflicted an unprecedented human and material toll.
His move, which also intended to distance Lebanon from Iran's influence and its attempts to link Lebanon to its own negotiating track with the United States, was met with fierce rejection by Hezbollah, which described the direct negotiations as capitulation to Israeli and U.S. demands.
Hezbollah, which was nurtured, armed, and financed by Iran since its founding in the early 1980s and became one of Tehran's most valuable regional assets, insists that maintaining its armed resistance is Lebanon's strength and refuses to disarm --, a key Israeli condition for withdrawing from southern Lebanon.
On Monday, the Lebanese Health Ministry released a new casualty count, showing that 4,324 people have been killed and 12,221 wounded since March 2 when Hezbollah resumed fighting in support of Iran - after 15 months of inactivity that followed the Nov. 27, 2024 cease-fire agreement.
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This story was originally published July 13, 2026 at 2:07 PM.