Netanyahu says civil war in Lebanon not Israel's aim

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told a French newspaper that Israeli forces had found "state-of-the-art" Russian weapons in searches of Hezbollah bases in south Lebanon.

Netanyahu highlighted to Le Figaro newspaper, in an interview released Wednesday, that under a 2006 U.N. Security Council resolution only the Lebanese army was allowed to have weapons south of the country's key Litani river.

"However, in this area, Hezbollah has dug hundreds of tunnels and caches, where we have just found a quantity of state-of-the-art Russian weapons," the French article quoted Netanyahu as saying.

The Washington Post, quoting Israeli officials, has reported that Russian and Chinese anti-tank weapons had been found in Israel's raids inside Lebanon since it escalated its conflict with Hezbollah last month.

The Israeli army did not immediately respond to an AFP question about the prime minister's comments.

Israel says the aim of its military campaign is to make the region safe so that about 60,000 evacuated residents of northern Israel can return to their homes.

Many left their homes because of cross-border shelling between Israel and Hezbollah after the launch of the Gaza war on October 7 last year.

"A new civil war in Lebanon would be a tragedy. It is certainly not our aim to provoke one. Israel does not intend to interfere in Lebanon's internal affairs," Netanyahu told Le Figaro.

"Our only aim is to allow our citizens living along the Lebanon frontier to go home and feel safe," he added.

Hezbollah and Israel fought a gradually mounting artillery duel after the Hamas attacks on Israel set off the Gaza war.

Since Israel started raids on Lebanon, at least 2,000 people have died in Lebanon, according to an AFP tally of Lebanese health ministry figures. The real toll is likely higher.