Opposition MPs held a press conference at the Parliament, addressing their stance on the war and the risks of its escalation. The final statement was read by MP Ashraf Rifi, which stated: "With the escalation and threats reaching their highest level since October 8, and increasing fears of the war's expansion, which has already cost the lives of hundreds of Lebanese and the total destruction of thousands of housing units, in addition to the economic and environmental damages from daily Israeli assaults, and considering the repercussions this escalation has on Lebanon at various levels, especially amid the ongoing political, economic, and financial crises facing the country, and the continued obstruction of electing a President of the Republic, we find ourselves compelled to express the views of those we represent: the Lebanese who categorically reject involving Lebanon in a war it has no part in, and who form a significant majority of the Lebanese population.
In our pursuit to prevent our country from slipping into a comprehensive war, we, as opposition MPs in Lebanon, hastened to hold this press conference to raise the alarm responsibly and rationally, and to present our vision through a roadmap that defuses the escalation and spares Lebanon from a devastating war, as Lebanon should not pay the price for any new equations. Consequently, we would like to emphasize several points:
First: We stress the necessity of not linking the Lebanese and Palestinian tracks concerning what is happening in Gaza and the need to separate them. While we continually assert our support for the Palestinian people, particularly those in Gaza, and the legitimacy of the Palestinian cause, as well as our commitment to the two-state solution and the Beirut Summit Declaration, we condemn all Israeli practices at all levels, including systematic killings, displacement, and settlement; that is one thing, while protecting our country and preventing it from being dragged into a larger war, which only serves to elevate Iran's position in the regional equation, is another. We will not accept today to be dragged into a comprehensive war that does not benefit the Palestinian cause and destroys Lebanon, nor will we concede that armed groups, whether local or foreign, operating on Lebanese territory impose a logic of unity of theaters, which is rejected by the majority of Lebanese, serving the regional resistance project that exploits the Palestinian cause without serving it in any form, and inciting animosity against Lebanon with the Arab and international communities, including Cyprus and the European Union.
Second: We renew our emphasis on the importance and necessity of implementing UN Resolution 1701 in all its provisions by all parties, and supporting the Lebanese Army and security institutions in controlling the international borders to the south, east, and north, as well as applying the binding international resolutions 1559, 1680, and other relevant international treaties signed by the Lebanese state which must be fully implemented to establish state sovereignty over its territory and its decision on war and peace, along with the relevant provisions of the Taif Agreement.
Third: We affirm that avoiding a broader war than the one currently occurring is still possible, and this requires the caretaker government to take on its responsibilities that it has neglected since the first day of the war, by immediately undertaking to:
1. Put an end to all military actions outside the framework of the Lebanese state and its apparatuses that originate from Lebanese territory and from any party.
2. Declare a state of emergency in the south and hand over control to the Lebanese Army.
3. Commission the Lebanese Army to confront any aggression on Lebanese territory.
4. Act diplomatically to return to the 1949 Armistice Agreement and fully implement Resolution 1701.
Fourth: We call for a parliamentary discussion session on the ongoing war in the south and the risks of its escalation, and for the nation's MPs to adopt the above four points as a roadmap to diffuse the escalation and spare Lebanon a war that the Lebanese do not desire and for which the official Lebanese institutions have not made the decision to engage."
