President Joseph Aoun received a phone call from Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the Presidency said, during a visit by the president to the United States.

Israeli warplanes conducted mock raids Monday over Lebanon's northern border, Akkar's heights and al-Hermel.

In the south of the country, drones dropped stun bombs on al-Mansouri and Marjaayoun, and Israeli forces carried out a massive explosion in the town of Kfartebnit.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a press briefing that Lebanon must be run by a legitimate government, "not Hezbollah, not Iran".

"You defeat and replace Hezbollah with a government that is strong enough to be the sole force of arms in the country, basically with the security of Lebanon in the hands of the Lebanese Armed Forces, and a government that’s able to provide prosperity for its citizens."

President Joseph Aoun met Sunday in Washington with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, ahead of his meeting Tuesday with U.S. President Donald Trump.

A State Dept. statement said Aoun and Rubio discussed "the implementation of the Trilateral Framework" that also involves Israel, with the Secretary commending "the courage of the Government of Lebanon, under President Aoun's leadership, for their determined effort to reclaim Lebanon’s sovereignty, disarm Hezbollah and dismantle its terrorist infrastructure, and move towards peace." 

Israeli occupying forces opened machine gun fire overnight, trapping a number of residents in the southern town of Harees, who appealed to the Lebanese Army to evacuate them.

German Foreign Minister Johannes Wadephul has proposed deploying a European Union force in Lebanon to replace the U.N. peacekeeping mission whose mandate is soon to expire, in order to prevent a security vacuum.

Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea said the two-decade-long campaign to restrict weapons solely to state authorities and bolster national sovereignty has yielded significant milestones.

In an interview published Friday in the Saudi daily Okaz, Geagea lauded the Lebanese Cabinet, arguing that its participation in direct negotiations with Israel in Washington is a primary indicator of change and a proof that Hezbollah has been defeated.

MP Ali Fayyad of Hezbollah on Friday charged that the Lebanese leadership "has abandoned its people, indifferent to their suffering and the extent of the crimes committed against them by the Israelis."

"This ruling authority seems to have become corrupt and is persisting in its choices despite all the failures and despite all the advice and criticism directed at it from abroad and within, even from its allies," Fayyad added.

The European Union and Lebanon held Thursday a 4th meeting of a Sub-Committee on Transport, Energy, Environment and Water, the EU delegation to Lebanon said.

"The meeting builds on ongoing efforts to strengthen cooperation in key sectors, which the EU has significantly supported in recent years, amid current challenges," the European delegation said.

MP Hussein al-Hajj Hassan of Hezbollah stressed Thursday that Hezbollah “will not hand over the weapons.”