U.S. envoy Tom Barrack announced Thursday that the U.S. “continues to support Lebanon’s endeavor to rebuild its own state” and “find peace with its neighbors,” days after his remarks he made sparked concern and outrage in Lebanon and drew responses from Speaker Nabih Berri and PM Nawaf Salam.

In a post on X, Barrack added that Washington also backs Lebanon as it continues “its quest for resolution of its recently signed cessation of hostilities agreement in November of 2024, including the disarmament of Hizballah.”

Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei has marked the first anniversary of the assassination of Hezbollah’s former secretary general Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, calling him a “great wealth for the Islamic world.”

“He was not just for Shiites or Lebanon. He was a wealth for the whole Islamic world,” Khamenei said. “He is gone, but the wealth he created remains,” he added.

Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea has blasted “the strong opposition that Hezbollah is showing for any cooperation for the rise of the state,” adding that “this is what’s obstructing and delaying everything in Lebanon.”

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, like many other Lebanese, was surprised by U.S. Ambassador Tom Barrack's recent comments which questioned the Lebanese government's commitment to disarm Hezbollah following the November 2024 ceasefire with Israel.

In an interview with Sky News Arabia, Barrack had said "the Lebanese, and I don't mean this in a disrespectful way, all they do is talk", claiming that there is no real action on Hezbollah's disarmament.

As world leaders convened in the annual meeting of presidents, prime ministers and monarchs at the United Nations General Assembly with a plea to choose peace over war, President Joseph Aoun called on the General Assembly to stand with Lebanon.

"The Lebanese experience has taught me that there is no development without peace, no peace without justice, and no justice without human rights," Aoun said, as he called for an immediate halt of Israeli aggression on Lebanon, the withdrawal of Israeli troops from occupied Lebanese territory, the release of Lebanese prisoners held in Israel, and a full implementation of U.N. Resolution 1701.

The EU has condemned the Israeli drone strike that killed several civilians including children on Sunday in southern Lebanon’s Bint Jbeil, noting that the incident followed an “escalation” of Israeli attacks and evacuation warnings.

The southern town of Bint Jbeil on Tuesday buried five people, including three children and their father, killed in an Israeli strike over the weekend.

Shadi Charara, a car dealer, was killed while driving home to the southern seaside city of Tyre on Sunday with his wife and four children after having lunch at his father-in-law's house in the town of Bint Jbeil, a few kilometers from the border with Israel.

After Prime Minister Nawaf Salam issued a memo asking authorities to prohibit the unauthorized use of touristic and archaeological sites, Hezbollah released a new statement about its intention to illuminate the iconic Raouche Rock with images of its slain leaders Hassan Nasrallah and Hashem Safieddine.

In its statement, Hezbollah called on supporters to take part in the event at 6:00 pm Thursday, saying the rock will be illuminated with the Lebanese flag at 6:50 pm and with the two pictures from 6:55 pm to 7:00 pm.

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri on Tuesday urged an “official Lebanese stance” on the latest alarming remarks by U.S. envoy Tom Barrack, saying what he said about “the Lebanese government, army and resistance” is rejected and “contradicts with what he had previously said.”

Paying homage to those who were killed in Israel’s 2024 war on Lebanon, in a statement marking its first anniversary, Berri reiterated “adherence to the ceasefire agreement to which Lebanon through its president, government and resistance have committed since the first moments it went into effect on November 27.”

President Joseph Aoun met overnight in New York with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, on the sidelines of the annual U.N. General Assembly meetings.

A Presidency statement said Aoun asked Rubio for U.S. assistance in “asserting Israel’s commitment to the clauses of the November 27, 2024 declaration for the cessation of hostilities in south Lebanon, its withdrawal from the points it is occupying, the return of the Lebanese captives held by it, and the implementation of Resolution 1701 with all its stipulations, especially that the Lebanese side has not carried out any violation of this agreement.”