Lebanese PM Cancels UN Trip Amid Escalating Tensions with Israel

Lebanese Prime Minister has canceled his planned trip to the UN General Assembly due to rising tensions with Israel. Stay informed about the situation and its diplomatic implications.

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati has decided to forgo his attendance at the upcoming UN General Assembly session in New York next week, following a series of deadly explosions that have been largely attributed to Israel.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, a multitude of electronic communication devices utilized by members of the militant group Hezbollah detonated simultaneously across Lebanon, resulting in nearly 40 fatalities and approximately 3,000 injuries, affecting both militants and civilians alike.

While officials in West Jerusalem have neither confirmed nor denied their involvement, various media sources have reported that the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad was implicated in rigging handheld pagers and walkie-talkies with explosives.

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These explosions were succeeded by cross-border rocket assaults from Hezbollah and retaliatory Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon.

In a statement issued on Saturday, Mikati called upon the international community to denounce the “horrific Israeli massacres.” He remarked, “In light of the developments related to the Israeli aggression on Lebanon, I decided to cancel my trip. There is no priority at present that surpasses stopping the massacres committed by the Israeli enemy and the multiple types of wars it is waging.”

Israeli officials reiterated their commitment this week to employ all necessary measures to prevent Hezbollah from launching rockets into northern Israel. Since October 2023, the IDF and Hezbollah have engaged in cross-border exchanges of fire, a situation that escalated following a Hamas-led incursion into Israel, which has triggered the ongoing conflict in Gaza.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced on Wednesday a “new phase in the war” against Hezbollah, pledging to “continue to act to undermine the capabilities of” the armed group based in Lebanon.

Several nations, including Russia and China, along with the UN, have condemned the use of electronic communication devices as weapons. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk has called for an investigation into these incidents.