‘Health crime’: Aoun slams Israel over spraying chemicals in south Lebanon

Lebanese president says latest ‘aggression’ represents an environmental crime and a violation of country’s sovereignty.Published On 4 Feb 2026Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun has accused Israel of committing an environmental crime after Israeli forces sprayed an unknown substance over southern Lebanese towns, which Beirut described as toxic.Aoun condemned the Israeli move on Wednesday, saying he ordered government agencies to take all diplomatic and legal measures to “respond to this aggression”, which he said represents a “blatant violation” of Lebanon’s sovereignty.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3How Israel destroyed Gaza’s health system ‘deliberately and methodically’list 2 of 3Israeli strikes hit two more south Lebanon villages amid ‘ceasefire’list 3 of 3Will Hezbollah continue to avoid responding to Israel’s attacks on Lebanon?end of list“This is an environmental and health crime against Lebanese citizens and their land,” Aoun was quoted as saying by Lebanon’s National News Agency.He added that the incident is a “continuation of repeated Israeli attacks on Lebanon and its people”.Since Hezbollah and Israel reached a ceasefire agreement in November 2024, Israel has been attacking Lebanon almost daily in breach of the deal.“These dangerous practices that target agricultural lands and the livelihoods of citizens and threaten their health and environment require the international community and relevant United Nations organisations to assume their responsibilities to stop these attacks,” Aoun said.UN peacekeepers in south Lebanon, known as UNIFIL, had said they were informed on Monday by the Israeli military that it would spray a “non-toxic chemical substance” from the air over areas near the border.“The [Israeli military] said that peacekeepers should stay away and remain under cover, forcing them to cancel over a dozen activities,” UNIFIL said.Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said on Tuesday that UNIFIL suspended its operations for nine hours due to the attack, and the force later worked with the Lebanese army to collect samples of the sprayed substance to be tested for toxicity.