Prime Minister Nawaf Salam on Saturday visited several southern cities and towns, stressing that "the right of the people of the South to safety, to their homes, to their land, and to a dignified life is an indivisible national right."

Hezbollah has replaced a top security official who was in charge of coordination with Lebanon's security agencies after he told the group's leadership that he wants to step down, two officials with the group who were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter said.

Wafiq Safa had headed Hezbollah's Liaison and Coordination Unit for decades and it was not immediately clear what his new job within the Iran-backed group is going to be. Hezbollah's leadership accepted Safa's resignation Friday, one of the officials said.

Iran-backed groups in the Middle East, including Hezbollah, should exercise the "greatest restraint" if there is regional escalation between Iran and the United States to avoid destabilizing the region, France's foreign minister said.

Jean-Noël Barrot made his comments in Beirut, where he arrived earlier in the day after visiting Syria and Iraq. His visit also comes as the U.S. and Iran held indirect talks in Oman on how to approach discussions over Tehran's nuclear program.

U.N. peacekeepers patrolling southern Lebanon have faced a dramatic surge of "aggressive behavior" by Israeli forces over the last year, including drone-dropped grenades and machine-gun fire, according to an internal report seen by The Associated Press.

The report by one of the 48 nations that together have more than 7,500 peacekeepers in southern Lebanon says the number of incidents jumped from just one in January to 27 in December. The hilly frontier zone where the UNIFIL force patrols has seen decades of cross-border violence. Israel and Lebanon's Hezbollah fought a full-scale war in 2024.

President Joseph Aoun announced Friday that “the arms monopolization decision is taken and is being gradually implemented, while taking into consideration protecting civil peace and preserving stability and security in the country.”

“Political contacts are part of the adopted plan, in parallel with the military plan devised by the Army Command,” Aoun added.

President Joseph Aoun met Friday with U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa to discuss the recent developments and the results of Army Commander General Rodolphe Haykal’s visit to Washington.

“They further discussed preparations for the conference to support the Lebanese Army and Internal Security Forces, scheduled for March 5 in Paris, in which the United States will participate. A preparatory meeting will precede the conference to coordinate positions, particularly as President Aoun's attendance alongside (French) President (Emmanuel) Macron lends it significant importance,” the Presidency said.

Free Patriotic Movement chief Jebran Bassil discussed Hezbollah's disarmament in a televised interview, in which he said that for Hezbollah to hand over its arms Lebanon must work on a comprehensive strategy to protect the country.

Lebanon "must simultaneously secure an Israeli withdrawal and defense agreements with countries, such as the United States, in order to convince Hezbollah to hand over its weapons. A comprehensive policy to protect Lebanon must be established," he told talk show host Marcel Ghanem on Thursday evening.

MP Ali Fayyad of Hezbollah noted Friday that "the country is at a sensitive and critical crossroads requiring everyone to act with the utmost responsibility to save it and guide it to safety.”

“This will enable us all to confront these numerous pressures and challenges, which necessitates consultation, dialogue and understanding regarding the critical issues it faces," Fayyad said.

Druze leader Walid Jumblat stressed Friday in an X post that “preserving national unity and the unity of institutions is more important than the arbitrary U.S.-Israeli dictations.”

Jumblat’s stance comes in the wake of Lebanese Army chief General Rodolphe Haykal’s visit to the United States.

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri has emphasized that the upcoming parliamentary elections will be held on time in May.

“Between May and July the electoral law will not change and will stay the same as it is now,” Berri added, in an interview with the Asas Media news portal.