Israel Strikes Lebanon Amid Looming Ceasefire MOU... Iran Blames US

Netanyahu: "Retaliation for Hezbollah Attack"
Lebanon State News Agency Reports at Least 3 Dead
Iran Criticizes U.S. for "Lack of Will and Capability to Fulfill Promises"

Amid growing anticipation for a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to end hostilities between the United States and Iran, Israel carried out an airstrike on the southern outskirts of Beirut, the capital of Lebanon. Senior Iranian officials strongly criticized the United States, stating that if the two countries are to continue dialogue, the U.S. must first demonstrate its ability to rein in Israel.

On the 14th (local time), smoke rose in southern Lebanon due to an airstrike by Israel. Photo by EPA/EPA News

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz released a joint statement on the 14th (local time), announcing that the Israeli Air Force had struck a Hezbollah facility located in the southern suburb of Beirut, in the Dahiyeh area. They stated, "We targeted Hezbollah terrorist facilities in the Dahiyeh region in response to Hezbollah's attack on Israeli territory," warning, "Israel will not tolerate any attacks targeting its territory."

The Israeli military also confirmed in a statement that it had precisely targeted an apartment in southern Beirut that was being used as a Hezbollah command post. The military said that further details about the operation would be released at a later time. Prior to this airstrike, it was reported that three drones launched by Hezbollah entered northern Israeli territory and exploded earlier that morning. Lebanon's state-run news agency NNA reported that at least three people were killed and 15 were injured in the airstrike.

After Israel's airstrike, the Iranian side raised the issue of U.S. responsibility. Ebrahim Rezaei, spokesperson for the Iranian parliament’s Foreign Policy and National Security Committee, posted on X (formerly Twitter), stating, "If you want agreement and understanding, the United States must first control the Zionist regime (Israel)." He further warned, "If you cannot control this 'mad dog,' it will bite the United States before the ink on the agreement is even dry." Previously, just before Iran’s retaliatory attack against Israel, he hinted at the possibility of military conflict by saying, "Watch the skies."

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Speaker of the Iranian parliament, also commented on Israel's attack on Dahiyeh, saying, "The United States has once again shown that it either lacks the will or the ability to fulfill its promises," and criticized, "The 'Bad Cop, Good Cop' game has become too old." He added, "If you (the United States) do not have the will and capability to fulfill your promises, it is impossible to continue discussions about the future."

Israel has long claimed that Hezbollah's headquarters are located in Dahiyeh. Despite U.S. President Donald Trump’s dissuasion to maintain ceasefire negotiations with Iran, Israel conducted an airstrike on the area on the 7th. On the same day, Iran also launched dozens of ballistic missiles toward Israel in retaliation. Israel, in turn, responded with further airstrikes using fighter jets.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.