Prime Minister Mark Carney on Tuesday condemned what he called Israel’s “illegal invasion” of southern Lebanon, which he said is a violation of territorial sovereignty.
Carney told reporters in French in Wakefield, Que., that a ceasefire is necessary between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah, against which Israeli forces have launched a renewed offensive.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said earlier Tuesday that Israel plans to control a 30-kilometre area between the Israel-Lebanon border and the Litani River — about one-tenth of Lebanon’s territory — even after the fighting with Hezbollah ends.
“It’s an illegal invasion — it’s an invasion of Lebanon,” Carney said in English. “It’s a violation of their territorial sovereignty.
“From a practical perspective, the government of Lebanon has banned Hezbollah, is trying to take action against Hezbollah and their terrorist activities and their threats to Israel. And that is the purported justification for this invasion. So we condemn it.”
Global Affairs Canada posted on X last week that the government “strongly condemns Israel’s plans to occupy territory in southern Lebanon,” while also calling on Hezbollah to disarm and cease its attacks on Israel.
The Canadian government has declared Hezbollah to be a foreign terrorist entity since 2002. The group takes inspiration from the Iranian revolution and is dedicated to Israel’s destruction, according to the listing.
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The war in the Middle East widened when Hezbollah launched missiles toward Israel on March 2, two days after Israel and the U.S. attacked Iran.
Israel immediately retaliated and declared war on Hezbollah, launching waves of airstrikes and sending ground troops across the border.
More than 1.2 million people have been displaced and another 1,200 have been killed in Lebanon since the fighting began. Ten Israeli soldiers have died in Lebanon, including four announced Tuesday, and three United Nations peacekeepers were killed earlier this week.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) earlier this month ordered residents to leave swathes of the south, the Hezbollah-controlled southern suburbs of the capital Beirut, and the group’s political heartlands in eastern Lebanon.
Katz said Tuesday that Israel will destroy all homes in Lebanese villages near the border, and that 600,000 people who fled the south will not be allowed home until northern Israel is secure.
“At the end of the operation, the IDF will establish a security zone inside Lebanon — a line of defense against anti-tank missiles — and will maintain security control over the entire area up to the Litani River, including the remaining Litani bridges,” he said in a statement.
He added the destruction of homes near the Lebanese border will be done “in accordance with the model used in Rafah and Beit Hanoun in Gaza, in order to permanently remove the threats near the border to northern residents.”
Israel on Tuesday launched new strikes targeting what it described as Hezbollah infrastructure in Beirut.
Lebanon’s minister of social affairs, Haneen Sayed, told Reuters that Israel’s ground operation, which she described as a “land grab,” was deepening the risk that Lebanese would be stuck in long-term displacement.
The Israeli military said Tuesday that Hezbollah had fired almost 5,000 drones, rockets and missiles at Israel during the conflict.
The war is the second major conflict between Israel and Hezbollah since 2024. Israel dealt Hezbollah heavy blows in the last war, killing its leader Hassan Nasrallah and thousands of its fighters.
—with files from Reuters
Hezbollah fires 5000 drones rockets and missles and Carney wants Israel to be content with Lebanon’s gov “trying to take action”?
“Great winds blow from empty caves”
accurately applied to Trudeau when he spoke but with Carney it would be better described as “Hurricanes”.
Maybe this Liberal Government should focus on cleaning up the mess it has made in this country after 10 years of disastrous rule instead of pointing its finger at other some nations while giving pass to others .
Nothing has changed ,another year has passed and the Liberals continue to burn the wood of the framework in the House of Canada.
Who cares you useless twit. When the US starts bombing us for being commie twits are you going to let them or invade it?
Where was Carney when Lebanon allowed Hezbollah to rein rockets on Israel. If a country can’t control the actions of terrorists on its sovereign lands then what is its neighbour supposed to do? Israel could have indiscriminately responded in kind. If you allow someone to use your land (willingly or not) for bad purposes, you are indirectly responsible. The government of Lebanon cannot sit on both sides of the fence.
Waiting for your condemnation of China.
Carney’s limited understanding of the working relationship between the government of Lebanon and Israel to defeat and remove the Iranian proxy, Hezbollah is obvious by his short statement. Hopefully one day soon Canada can elect a government with a global understanding of what is happening in tight world and will speak to the threats we face.
Carney does not speak for me
Go to hell Carney.
Why do you feel the need to point out what language Carney’s response is? Who cares? Hack journalism trying to start something! Pathetic.
PM Carney, What would you do if terrorists in Quebec started bombing major cities in Ontario? Would you be surprised if you told them to stop and they didn’t? What if this continued in waves for many months or perhaps years, then what? Would you not try to defend Ontario because here in Ontario we just want to live in peace!
Israel needs to defend itself, period!
Carney needs a bullet in his head, soon.
What is wrong with Carney??!! Absolutely misinformed! Hezbollah, the terrorist group funded by Iran keeps shooting rockets into Israel! What would the Liberals do if a terrorist group was firing rockets into Canada???
Mind YOUR OWN BUSINESS CARNEY!! Do NOT bring any canadians into wars that have been going on now for OVER 1,000 plus years. The INTERNET is what brought these wars to Canada, heck, to north america, that and immigration.
I don’t support Carney, but even a broken clock is correct twice a day. Bravo to Carney for standing up to unadulterated evil.
Yeah, that should do it.
So why did Carney not condemn Israel’s attack, and occupation of Gaza? How about their attack on Iran with the US. How about US attack on Venezuela?
It takes the murder of peacekeepers before he speaks up…
Global then points out all the retaliation attacks, as if that justifies what Israel is doing.