Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said on Monday he intends to continue talks with the Israeli government despite the escalating tensions between Israel and the Shiite militia Hezbollah.
"Negotiations are safer than war," he told a committee of Lebanese private sector representatives, while admitting that talks would not produce immediate results.
Aoun accused Israel of failing to adequately support an April ceasefire agreement. According to the agreement, Israel should have withdrawn from five positions it still holds in southern Lebanon.
Instead, Aoun said, the country continued its military operations and shelling of towns under the guise of self-defence.
Israeli and Lebanese representatives are set to meet on Tuesday in Washington for direct talks to end the fighting. However, Hezbollah is not a party to the talks.
Fatalities on both sides in latest fighting
Aoun's comments came after eight people were killed and 19 injured in an overnight attack in southern Lebanon, state news agency NNA reported.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office had announced new attacks on militia targets in Beirut's southern suburbs on Monday morning.
Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz issued the instructions in response to Hezbollah's "repeated and ongoing violations of the ceasefire in Lebanon and its attacks against our civilians and cities," they said in a joint statement.
The Beirut suburbs, known as Dahiyeh, are considered a Hezbollah stronghold, but are also densely populated. Since the ceasefire began in mid-April, Israel's army has rarely attacked there, due to US government requests, according to Israeli media reports.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah has stepped up its attacks on northern Israel. Air raid alerts were repeatedly triggered in northern Israel due to rocket and drone fire from the neighbouring country.
Israel's army said that Hezbollah fired 35 projectiles at Israel on Sunday. The militia has recently also been using fibre-optic drones, which are more resistant to being jammed, putting Israel's army under pressure.
The Israeli military also reported another soldier killed in southern Lebanon. According to Israeli media, the soldier died overnight in a Hezbollah drone attack.
Israel has expanded its ongoing offensive in the south and is advancing further north, including beyond the Litani River. The river is seen as an important geographical dividing line in the conflict.
According to local reports, the first Israeli tank recently also crossed the river. Katz said the goal was to bring the Litani region under Israeli control and to rid it of "weapons and terrorists."
