Southern Lebanon witnessed a broad Israeli military escalation, as Israeli artillery shelling targeted the town of Nabatieh al-Fawqa, according to MTV Lebanon, and intermittent shelling hit Hraj Ali al-Taher on the outskirts of Nabatieh. The National News Agency reported airstrikes on the outskirts of Haris and between Mayfadoun and Zawtar al-Sharqiya in the Nabatieh District, while Al Jazeera Net reported Israeli airstrikes and artillery shelling on southern Lebanon. A report said Israel opened fire on the army and spoke of a new pretext to strike the south. Reports also addressed a coordinated Israeli attack on the Lebanese Army’s performance in the south, describing it with the phrases “failed the test” and “dragging his feet,” and a report pointed to an Israeli method that causes earthquakes to destroy southern Lebanon. In a related context, lebanondebate.com reported that Aoun declared war on Hezbollah from Nabatieh, and an article spoke of an expected “Aouni” attack, while Abdullah was quoted as saying that an Israeli targeting that hit comrades of the Socialist [Party] represents “a political message we understand.”
On the diplomatic track, the US Embassy in Beirut announced that the next round of official Lebanese-Israeli talks will be held in Rome in October, which a US official also reported. This coincided with reports of a field and diplomatic shift in southern Lebanon, with expectations of an anticipated Israeli withdrawal and a meeting in Washington next week, and the Israeli Broadcasting Authority reported that the Israeli army is preparing to redeploy from southern Lebanon. However, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz stressed that Israel will not withdraw from Lebanon before disarming Hezbollah, while Khawaja said that any meter where Israel remains inside Lebanese territory constitutes a violation of international resolutions, and the Secretary-General of the Arab League considered that the Lebanese crisis is not limited to Hezbollah but also includes the continuation of the Israeli occupation. Reports also indicated Israeli contacts with the Lebanese government to discuss the possibility of the Lebanese army entering the Ali Al-Taher area and its surroundings, and that 15 countries are participating in a preparatory meeting to support the army. Aoun was reported to have adhered to Rubio’s instructions not to stop negotiations, while Qabalan considered that there is no guarantee for the south and that Lebanon is greater than the guarantee of the resistance.
Domestically, political, judicial, and economic files escalated. Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri called for holding the government accountable, amid talk of an accountability session open to “traps” and of a tone of toppling the government and the positions of prominent forces. Reports addressed 75 names on the table in the port file, noting that a name from Baabda could ignite the file, and spoke of an open confrontation in the Judicial Council between Abboud and Al-Hajj. On the economic front, a report warned of a law described as the most dangerous to depositors’ money, and an article questioned the absence of an official inventory of Lebanon’s losses estimated at about 11 billion dollars. Al-Hout called for a real implementation of the decision of a weapons-free Beirut, the Free Patriotic Movement said the situation is not reassuring and the danger is great, and reports addressed contradictory war narratives and misinformation facing the Lebanese voter.
On the social and environmental levels, prisoners in Roumieh prison launched an open strike after the amnesty was obstructed, Civil Defense faced simultaneous and spreading fires in several Lebanese regions in a race against time, and Abu Zeid warned of a health and environmental disaster threatening the city of Sidon.