Free Patriotic Movement chief Jebran Bassil on Tuesday warned that Israel appears to be trying to “drag Lebanon into war,” shortly after Israeli airstrikes killed a number of Lebanese journalists and civilians.

“The shelling of a church, the house of a Lebanese MP and unarmed civilians and the direct targeting and killing of journalists are war crimes,” Bassil said in a post on the X social platform, formerly Twitter.

Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati on Tuesday strongly condemned the Israeli drone strike that killed al-Mayadeen journalists Farah Omar and Rabih al-Maamari and a civilian guide.

"This attack proves once more that Israeli crimes know no limit and that (Israel's) aim is to silence the media who expose its crimes and its attacks," Mikati added.

Two civilians and two journalists were Killed Tuesday in south Lebanon by Israeli bombardment.

Al-Mayadeen reporter and videographer Farah Omar, 25 years old, and Rabih al-Maamari, a father of two, have been killed as Israel targeted a group of journalists between Tayr Harfa and al-Jebbayn.

Senior Biden adviser Amos Hochstein arrived in Israel on Monday for talks with senior Israeli officials on preventing a war between Israel and Lebanon, two U.S. and Israeli officials told U.S. news portal Axios.

Hochstein arrived in Israel after another day of escalating skirmishes between Hezbollah and the Israeli army on the border, with heavy bombardments by the Lebanon-based group and airstrikes by the Israeli Air Force.

Hezbollah targeted Monday the Israeli Biranit post with four Volcano missiles (Burkan) and Israel retaliated by shelling several border towns including al-Labbouneh, al-Naqoura, Ain al-Zarqaa, Yaroun, Rmeish, Aita al-Shaab, Mays al-Jabal, Houla and Tayr Harfa.

later on Monday, Hezbollah targeted other Israeli posts, including the Zebdine barracks in the occupied Shebaa Farms, Ramim, the Bar'am kibbutz, Hadb al-Bustan, Malkia and Hadb Yaroun.

Calm contacts are taking place away from the spotlight regarding the issue of the army chief post, governmental sources said.

“The issue of avoiding vacuum in the army command will be left to the last 15 minutes,” an informed political source told al-Joumhouria newspaper in remarks published Monday.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has told reporters that Hezbollah has fired over 1,000 munitions at Israel since October 7.

Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi on Sunday threw his support behind Army Commander General Joseph Aoun, saying that the army chief should not be changed until the election of a new president.

Qatar intends to activate the contacts over Lebanon’s presidential election file, media reports have said.

An informed political source told Lebanon’s ad-Diyar newspaper, in remarks published Sunday, that the activation of the contacts will come after Doha succeeds in its mediation between Hamas and Israel, which will see the release of a batch of Israeli hostages in return for the release of Palestinian prisoners and the supply of Gaza with fuel and aid.

The issue of the looming vacuum in the army chief post is still the subject of intensive contacts and efforts but no progress has been made in this regard, which has forced the postponement of a Cabinet session that was supposed to be held Monday, a media report said on Sunday.

“The concentrated attempts to find a solution or exit for this crisis have not succeeded until the moment,” a ministerial source told ad-Diyar newspaper, stressing that Cabinet will not convene on Monday as had been previously reported.