Lebanon’s president issued one of his strongest warnings yet against Hezbollah, accusing the Iran-backed terrorist group of endangering the country and risking a devastating new war with Israel that could transform Lebanon into “a second Gaza.”

Speaking during a meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun criticized the recent rocket fire launched from Lebanese territory toward Israel.

Although he did not mention the group by name, Aoun’s comments were widely understood as a rebuke of Hezbollah.

“The launch of a few rockets from Lebanon toward Israel was a trap and an almost overt ambush for Lebanon and the Lebanese state and the Lebanese people,” Aoun said, according to a statement released by his office.

The warning comes amid escalating tensions across the region following the assassination of Ali Khamenei in an Israeli strike on February 28. In response to the killing, Hezbollah resumed rocket and drone attacks against Israel last week after a prolonged lull.

Aoun dismissed the attacks as both reckless and strategically meaningless. He argued that the rocket fire neither deterred Israel nor served as meaningful retaliation for Khamenei’s death. Instead, he suggested the strikes may have been designed to provoke a wider Israeli military response inside Lebanon.

“There are those who wanted these rockets to lure the Israeli army to infiltrate inside Lebanon, and to invade some of its regions, and perhaps even to occupy them,” Aoun said.

Such a scenario, he warned, could leave Lebanon trapped between two disastrous choices: either confronting Israel directly in a full-scale war or allowing Israeli forces to expand their operations inside the country.

“That would lead to turning Lebanon into a second Gaza,” Aoun cautioned.

His remarks come as the IDF pushes deeper into southern Lebanon amid ongoing clashes along the border.

The Lebanese president said his government intends to enforce a renewed ban on Hezbollah military activity “in a clear and decisive manner,” signaling a potential confrontation between the state and the powerful militia, which has long operated as an independent armed force inside the country.

Aoun also appealed to the international community for help stabilizing the situation. He called for diplomatic efforts to secure a full ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, increased support for the Lebanese Armed Forces, and assistance in disarming Hezbollah.

He further urged a return to direct talks between Israel and Lebanon in hopes of preventing the conflict from spiraling into a wider regional war.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)