Lebanon's foreign minister, Youssef Rajji, triggered backlash this week by suggesting that Israel retains the right to attack Lebanon under the terms of the ceasefire agreement, in remarks seen as justifying Israeli aggression and undermining Lebanese sovereignty.
In an interview on Tuesday with Sky News Arabia, Rajji argued that "as long as weapons are not permanently restricted", Israel "unfortunately has the right to continue its attacks according to the agreement".
His comments were widely condemned by Lebanese officials, who accused the foreign minister of aligning himself with Israeli narratives while Lebanon remains under ongoing military assault and occupation.
Health Minister Rakan Nassereddine said Rajji's remarks had violated the principle of ministerial solidarity, stressing that government officials should stand with the Lebanese people and reaffirm that "the aggressor is always the Israeli enemy".
Hezbollah MP Ali Ammar went further, accusing Rajji of "granting the Israeli enemy the right to attack Lebanon and justifying all its crimes against the Lebanese people".
Ammar described the comments as a "resounding political, national and moral failure".
"Instead of performing his duty to condemn Israeli aggression and activate diplomatic pressure in defence of Lebanese sovereignty and citizens, we see him justifying Zionist criminality and the killing of his own people," Ammar added.
He called on President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam to take a "clear and decisive stance" to halt rhetoric that "fuels internal division and serves only the enemy".
The remarks come as Israeli forces continue to carry out near daily violations of the November 2024 ceasefire, including air strikes, drone attacks, ground incursions and the expansion of military positions in southern Lebanon.
The agreement does not grant Israel the right to unilaterally attack Lebanon, and stipulates that alleged violations should be referred to a US-led monitoring mechanism rather than acted on militarily.
Lebanese officials and UN sources have repeatedly stated that Israel had failed to meet its own obligations under the deal, including withdrawing from five occupied Lebanese points and halting strikes.
The UN peacekeeping force UNIFIL has said it has seen no evidence of Hezbollah rebuilding military infrastructure south of the Litani River, contradicting Israeli claims used to justify continued attacks.
Despite this, Rajji's comments were seized upon by Israeli officials and media, with Israel's official Arabic language account on X presenting the remarks as evidence that the Lebanese government had accepted Israeli conditions.
The backlash has also highlighted Rajji's political alignment. Appointed as foreign minister in February 2025, he is closely associated with the Lebanese Forces, a party led by former militia leader Samir Geagea and long hostile to Hezbollah.
The Lebanese Forces cooperated militarily with Israel during the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon, a history that continues to shape perceptions of the party's positions on Israel and Hezbollah.
Shia cleric Ahmad Qabalan said the role of the foreign ministry was "to protect Lebanon, not to protect Israel", while the Amal Movement demanded that Rajji be held accountable within the Council of Ministers.
More than 300 Lebanese people, including women and children, have been killed in southern Lebanon since the ceasefire came into effect, raising further anger over remarks seen as normalising Israel's continued breach of the agreement.