Lebanon against full-blown war with Israel

Lebanon Thursday called for avoiding a full-blown war with Israel, a day after a Hezbollah attack killed two Israeli soldiers in Shebaa Farms at the intersection of the Lebanon-Syria border and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

According to Lebanese Information Minister, Tamzi Jreij, the cabinet discussed the situation in the southern part of the country and all parties showed keenness to avoid deterioration of the situation, Xinhua reported, citing Lebanon's state-owned National News Agency.

The Lebanese cabinet condemned the Israeli attacks against some southern towns in the wake of the Shebaa operation, urging the UN to "shoulder its responsibilities in preventing attempts to jeopardise peace in this region".

The council of ministers called for "depriving the Israeli enemy of the chance to drag Lebanon into an all-out confrontation that would threaten the entire region," stressing its commitment to the UN Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 1701 and the noted the role of the UN forces in southern Lebanon.

The UNSC adopted Resolution 1701 in 2006, calling for a full cessation of hostilities in the month-long war between Israel and Hezbollah, while mapping out a formula for the phased withdrawal of the Israel Defence Forces from southern Lebanon.

The Lebanese council of ministers also offered condolences on the death of a Spanish UN peacekeeper, who was killed in Israeli retaliatory shelling after Hezbollah's operation.

The cabinet underlined that "confronting any aggression must occur through the unity and solidarity of the Lebanese before anything else".

Two Israeli soldiers were killed and seven wounded Wednesday in a Hezbollah attack on a military convoy in the occupied Shebaa Farms.

A day earlier, four rockets were launched from Syria into the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights area, without causing injuries to anyone.

The two attacks came after an alleged Israel airstrike in Syria's Qoneitra city, that killed a commander of the Hezbollah and an Iranian general, along with other operatives. Israel did not acknowledge responsibility for the attack.

The Hezbollah attack on Shebaa Farms prompted Israel to shell areas in southern Lebanon in a significant escalation along the volatile border.

In a statement Wednesday, Lebanese Prime Minister Tammam Salam said: "The Israeli escalation on the border...after the Shebaa operation might pave the way for dangerous possibilities that do not serve peace and stability in the region."

Israel's Defence Minister Moshe Ya'alon Thursday said he received a message of restraint from the Hezbollah through the UN.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, on the other hand, blamed Iran Thursday for being behind the Shebaa attack.

Meanwhile, Iran pledged to stand by the "Lebanese resistance" against Israel.

Chairman of the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee in the Iranian parliament, Alaeddin Boroujerdi, congratulated the Hezbollah on its operation against Israel, and said: "The Qoneitra attack demonstrates that the Zionist entity does not have limits to its crimes."

He stressed that "Iran places great importance on the preservation of security in Lebanon".