UNIFIL on Friday expressed its heartfelt condolences to the Lebanese Army and the families of the personnel who lost their lives in yesterday’s Israeli drone explosion in Naqoura, wishing a speedy recovery to the injured. 

U.S. envoy Tom Barrack has revealed that he had asked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in their latest meeting in Israel to “give Lebanon a break.”

“Give Lebanon a break, give them a whiff of tolerance and understanding. You can’t be apparently so brutal on everybody,” Barrack said he told Netanyahu, in an interview with Mario Nawfal on the X platform.

Hardline Republican U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham has stressed that “it’s time for Hezbollah to go.”

“They are trained by Iran, they are loyal to Iran, and we’re looking for military power in Lebanon to be loyal to the Lebanese people and a good partner to the region,” Graham, who is the Chair of the Senate Budget Committee, said at a press conference in Tel Aviv, after meeting officials in Lebanon and Israel.

An Israeli drone strike on Friday targeted a car in the southern town of Seer al-Gharbiyeh, killing one person, the state-run National News Agency said.

Israel has kept up its strikes on Lebanon despite a November ceasefire that sought to end over a year of hostilities with Hezbollah, including two months of all-out war.

The Army Command on Friday stressed that it is “executing its missions with the highest levels of responsibility, professionalism and keenness on the country’s security and internal stability, in line with the political authority’s decisions and out of commitment to performing duties no matter the difficulties.”

The Command also called on media outlets “not to tackle the affairs of the military institution and launch speculations about its decisions,” urging them to “return to its official statements to obtain accurate information.”

Four members of the American University of Beirut (AUB) community have been appointed to the recently formed Lebanese National Commission for UNESCO, a body that gathers experts and public figures to advance education, culture, science, and communication in Lebanon, in line with UNESCO’s mission.

Two of the commission’s standing committees will be chaired by AUB faculty. Dr. Nadine Panayot, curator of the AUB Archaeological Museum and associate professor of practice, was chosen to preside over the Education and Culture Committee. She described education and culture as “our true capital and a vital foundation for a sustainable Lebanon,” adding that she was honored to take on this role under the leadership of Minister of Culture Ghassan Salameh.

French President Emmanuel Macron told Thursday President Joseph Aoun, in a phone call, that the army's plan for arms monopolization will receive "broad European and international support" and must be characterized with "accuracy."

Macron and Aoun discussed the plan that the army will develop to implement the Cabinet's decision to disarm Hezbollah and other armed factions. Macron lauded the step as "important", said it should be done with precision, and assured that the plan will have broad European and international support.

Israeli airstrikes on Thursday targeted the al-Zighrin area on the eastern outskirts of the Jezzine district town of al-Rihan, the National News Agency said.

The stream of the al-Khardali River was also targeted by several airstrikes in the al-Mahmoudiyeh area, NNA added.

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri has reportedly warned against confronting the Lebanese Army.

“Whoever throws (even a) rose at the Lebanese Army is a dog, a son of a dog, and this is the stance of the Amal and Hezbollah duo,” LBCI television quoted visitors of Berri as saying.

After his remarks sparked outrage in Lebanon and beyond, U.S. envoy Tom Barrack has offered an indirect apology to Lebanese journalists who were offended by his chiding remarks at the Baabda Palace, saying his use of the word “animalistic” was not meant to be voiced in “a derogatory manner.”

“I’m just saying, ‘Can we calm down, can we find some tolerance, some kindness. Yeah, let’s be, let’s be civilized.’ But it was inappropriate to do when the media is just doing their job,” Barrack said in an interview with Mario Nawfal on the X platform.