Minister Salameh: 'We are striving to put diplomatic pressure on Israel'

BEIRUT — Lebanon's Culture Minister Ghassan Salameh said Wednesday on the Qatari channel Al Jazeera that Lebanon continues to work toward a diplomatic solution to end the ongoing war raging in Lebanon.

"We are striving to put diplomatic pressure on Israel," the minister stated. "Negotiations are at a standstill for many reasons. On one hand, Israel refuses a cease-fire and on the other, there is still an internal deadlock regarding the formation of the Lebanese negotiating delegation," he added.

The war was initiated at dawn on March 2 when Hezbollah launched rockets at northern Israel in support of Iran. Since then, indiscriminate Israeli attacks across Lebanon have killed over 900 people and Israeli troops have launched an offensive into southern Lebanon. Despite a government decision that banned Hezbollah's military and security activities, the militia continues to fight Israel.

To put an end to the war, President Joseph Aoun proposed direct negotiations with Israel, but the initiative faces major obstacles. Israel has not shown will to engage with Lebanese negotiators, and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, leader of the Amal Movement — Hezbollah's ally — has so far refused to appoint a Shiite representative to the negotiating committee.

"International actors, including France, have welcomed our proposal to start negotiations with Israel. The principle of direct negotiations with Israel is not rejected, but in Lebanon, the debate is about the conditions for these negotiations," Salameh emphasized. He stressed that "there is no direct contact with Hezbollah regarding this process." Meanwhile, several Hezbollah officials have publicly rejected negotiating under fire.

"Some countries have adopted the Lebanese initiative, notably France. The United States has also expressed interest, but the Europeans are more interested in implementing it," Salameh said. The U.S., Israel’s staunch ally, has been conducting a joint war with Israel against Iran since Feb. 28.

Minister Salameh also lamented that "Israel is systematically expanding its hold over new areas of southern Lebanon."

"Israel’s goal with this systematic expansion in the South is to establish a buffer zone. Israel is carrying out population displacements and land confiscations to prevent the residents of the south from returning to their homes," he denounced.

Israeli military evacuation threats have already forcibly displaced over a million Lebanese from southern Lebanon, the Bekaa and Beirut’s southern suburbs. In response to the crisis, the Lebanese government has opened hundreds of reception centers across the country, including in public schools, to shelter the displaced population.