“Even during the severe economic and political crisis in Lebanon, Iran and Hezbollah are entangling the citizens of Lebanon in a front against Israel.
“Lebanon and its army must take responsibility for what is happening in their backyard,” he said.
Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah vowed to retaliate against any Israeli airstrikes during remarks on Saturday.
U.N Secretary-General António Guterres called on both sides “to exercise utmost restraint”, drawing the ire of Israel’s Ambassador to the UN and to the US.
It is “unfortunate that the UN Secretary-General repeatedly chooses to draw a moral equivalency between attacks perpetuated by designated terrorist organisations and the law-abiding, democratic State of Israel, which is a member of the UN,” Gilad Erdan said in a statement to Israeli media.
Israel and Hezbollah last fought in August 2006 during a 34-day conflict that claimed the lives of 163 Israelis, 44 of them civilians.
More than 1,100 Lebanese - mostly civilians - were also killed, according to Reuters.
