Shorter: UK, US Will Continue to Support the Lebanese Army

FILE PHOTO: Lebanese army soldiers gesture as they sit on their military vehicles in the town of Ras Baalbek, Lebanon August 21, 2017. Reuters
FILE PHOTO: Lebanese army soldiers gesture as they sit on their military vehicles in the town of Ras Baalbek, Lebanon August 21, 2017. Reuters
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Shorter: UK, US Will Continue to Support the Lebanese Army

FILE PHOTO: Lebanese army soldiers gesture as they sit on their military vehicles in the town of Ras Baalbek, Lebanon August 21, 2017. Reuters
FILE PHOTO: Lebanese army soldiers gesture as they sit on their military vehicles in the town of Ras Baalbek, Lebanon August 21, 2017. Reuters

British Ambassador to Lebanon Hugo Shorter has reaffirmed the support of the United Kingdom and the United States to the Lebanese Army as the sole defender of Lebanon.

“It is a respected and professional Army that has shown its ability to protect Lebanon from the biggest regional and internal threats and challenges,” the diplomat said Wednesday.

Shorter attended the High Level Steering Committee, with US Ambassador Elizabeth Richard and Lebanese Army Commander General Joseph Aoun at the new Land Border Training Center at Rayak.

The discussions focused on the Lebanese Army’s efforts to secure 100% of the Lebanese-Syrian border by 2019, the British embassy said in a statement.

During the meeting, Shorter inaugurated the Land Border Training Center at Rayak, it said.

This Center will support the Land Border regiments deployed along the totality of the Lebanese borders with Syria.

According to the embassy, the UK has committed over £60 million to this project in recent years, alongside significant contributions from the US and other international donors.

It said Shorter congratulated Aoun on the upcoming anniversary of Fajr el-Jouroud military operation which saw the defeat of ISIS in Lebanon, and “reaffirmed the UK’s support to the Lebanese Army as the sole defender of Lebanon, providing security to all citizens including near-border communities.”

“It has always been a privilege to meet the Commander of the Lebanese Army, General Joseph Aoun, and discuss progress on the UK’s Land Border Project. It has been a privilege to serve as ambassador to Lebanon for three incredible years,” he said.

“I have seen firsthand how the Army has continued to transform over this period,” Shorter said. He described it as a “professional” Army that has been capable of protecting Lebanon from the biggest regional and internal threats and challenges.

The diplomat said he was pleased that the UK and the US will continue helping the Lebanese Army construct and equip additional Protected Border Observation Posts and Forward Operating Bases to support the Land Border Regiments deliver their mission in maintaining security within Lebanon.



Israel Wages ‘Psychological War’ on Residents of Southern Lebanon

Lebanese inspect damage from an Israeli strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs. AP
Lebanese inspect damage from an Israeli strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs. AP
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Israel Wages ‘Psychological War’ on Residents of Southern Lebanon

Lebanese inspect damage from an Israeli strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs. AP
Lebanese inspect damage from an Israeli strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs. AP

Residents of southern Lebanon say they are living under the constant shadow of an Israeli “psychological war,” as drones hover overhead, sound bombs explode near villages, and airstrikes fuel a growing climate of fear across the border region.

While Israeli air raids and ground incursions have escalated in recent weeks, locals in towns such as Mays al-Jabal, Hula, and Kfar Kila report an additional, subtler kind of assault: one that aims not to destroy buildings, but to break spirits.

“Drones don’t leave our skies,” Mohammad, a resident of Bint Jbeil, told Asharq Al-Awsat.

“Explosions near homes, constant buzzing, and open threats on Israeli media – it’s designed to keep people afraid.”

The psychological toll has been mounting. Sound bombs were dropped in Hula on Wednesday, while Israeli forces crossed the border near the village of Tufa, setting fire to a truck clearing rubble.

In the town of Mansouri, a man was injured by an Israeli drone strike and hospitalized in nearby Tyre. In a separate incident, a man in his thirties was wounded by unexploded ordnance.

Israel’s tactics, residents say, aim to paralyze daily life and force displacement.

“This is more than a military campaign. It’s a war on the mind,” said former Mays al-Jabal mayor Abdel Moneim Shuqair, noting that only around 500 residents have returned to the town out of a pre-escalation population of 7,000.

Movement in the south has become increasingly perilous. Roads like the one linking Maroun al-Ras to Bint Jbeil are now considered too risky to travel.

“People avoid them because they’re completely exposed to Israeli surveillance. Any moment, a car could be targeted,” Shuqair told Asharq Al-Awsat.

On that note, Mohammed added that Israel doesn’t just want locals to leave; it wants to break their will to return.

In Kfar Kila, resident Mona Awadah described fleeing her home after it was targeted. Her husband survived the attack, but their home was no longer safe.

“We were one of the first families to return after the truce,” she said. “We put up a prefabricated home on our farmland, but even that was targeted. It’s as if they’re saying: you’re not safe anywhere – not even on your own land.”

Locals say the absence of a comprehensive state-led reconstruction plan is exacerbating their sense of abandonment. Efforts to rebuild homes or install mobile housing units have reportedly drawn further Israeli strikes. Some families have taken shelter in public schools, sleeping on makeshift bedding.

“There’s no alternative for us but this country and this army,” said Shuqair. “We need a clear stance from the state and a serious plan for a safe and dignified return,” he added.

As fear becomes routine, some residents warn of an even more dangerous development – adaptation. “The biggest danger is that people are starting to get used to the emptiness,” said Mohammad. “That’s what the occupation wants – for us to forget our land.”