Army chief Rodolphe Haykal called Friday on the Lebanese to trust and support the army as they have always done, amid American and domestic pressure on the army to speedily disarm Hezbollah.

Haykal also called on the government to secure equipment for the army and improve the conditions of the military personnel, and urged the Lebanese soldiers to persevere despite the rumors and the "slanderous campaigns".

Marking nearly one year since the November Understanding came into effect, the United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, told the United Nations Security Council that “since that time, noteworthy progress has been achieved on some issues, while others remain at a standstill”.

Briefing the Security Council on the implementation of Security Council resolution 1701 (2006) alongside United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix, the Special Coordinator emphasized that “time is of the essence”, noting that “Lebanon can no longer afford to be perceived as dragging its feet – on either its participation in dialogue or the establishment of a State monopoly on arms”. While commending the Lebanese Armed Forces for the progress seen in tackling non-State arms, particularly south of the Litani River, Hennis-Plasschaert stressed the outstanding and urgent need for a whole-of-government approach to the extension of State authority. “The army, alone, cannot bring resolution 1701 to life”, she said.

Israel used widely banned cluster munitions in its latest war on Lebanon, The Guardian said in a report, based on photos seen by arms experts.

Cluster munitions are air-dropped or ground-launched explosive weapons that release or eject smaller submunitions over a wide area, posing risks to civilians even after attacks as unexploded bomblets can kill or maim civilians and are hard to be located.

The ministers of energy of Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon met Thursday in Amman to discuss a plan to bring gas and electricity to crisis-hit Lebanon from Jordan via Syria.

Joint technical teams would be formed to assess the Syrian and Lebanese infrastructure and see if repairs need to be done as Syria's pipeline and electricity lines were damaged in the decade of civil war.

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri called Thursday on supporting the Lebanese army amid an American and domestic campaign against it.

"We should reward the army, its command, soldiers and officers, not question and target their sacred national role against the Israeli aggression and incite against them," Berri said, adding that Israel "has been and still is an obstacle between the Lebanese people and their real, complete independence."

Israeli defense officials assess that Hamas is closely coordinating with Hezbollah and Iran to revive and rebuild the so-called “Axis of Resistance,” as the Israeli army expands strikes in Gaza and southern Lebanon, Israeli officials said on Thursday, according to a Jerusalem Post report.

The officials said that U.S. pressure is, for now, restraining a fiercer Israeli response to “Hezbollah’s ceasefire violations.”

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam has reiterated that Lebanon is ready to engage in talks with Israel, adding that he will seek U.S. help in pushing for negotiations.

The prime minister added, in an interview with Bloomberg, that plans to demilitarize the south are "on track" and that the Lebanese Army is expanding its presence there, particularly in areas near the border with Israel.

The Israeli army launched strikes on four south Lebanon towns on Wednesday, claiming it was targeting "Hezbollah infrastructure" after warning civilians of the impending raids.

The strikes came a day after 13 people were killed in an Israeli strike on a Palestinian refugee camp in south Lebanon -- the worst raid since a ceasefire took effect last year between Israel and Hezbollah.

Hezbollah, in a statement issued Wednesday, condemned in the strongest terms what it called "the horrific massacre perpetrated by the criminal Zionist enemy last night in the Ain al-Helweh camp in Sidon,” which resulted in the death of thirteen Palestinian refugees and a large number of wounded.

“The attack targeted a densely populated area filled with innocent civilians and children, in a yet another brutal act added to the enemy's dark record of crimes and genocide against Palestinians, Lebanese and the peoples of the region," Hezbollah said.

Speaker Nabih Berri on Wednesday called for seeking an urgent U.N. Security Council session over Israel’s attacks in Lebanon.

Commenting on the airstrike that targeted the southern town of al-Tiri earlier in the day and wounded a number of school and university students, Berri decried that Israel considers itself above accountability, lamenting that Lebanon is being condemned and criticized despite “its commitment to Resolution 1701 and the November 2024 cessation of hostilities agreement.”