Tel Aviv, June 22 -- Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar has conveyed to his New Zealand counterpart, Winston Peters, that Israel intends to uphold the ceasefire in Lebanon, provided that Hezbollah does not violate the terms of the agreement.

Regarding the territories currently held by Israel in southern Lebanon, Saar stated in a post on X: "We don't have territorial ambitions in Lebanon, but we will not withdraw from the security zone and expose our citizens to Hezbollah's attacks and possible invasion."

Saar further argued that Lebanon has suffered from a long-standing erosion of its sovereignty, which he attributed to what he termed Iran's "indirect occupation" via Hezbollah.

Emphasising the strategic necessity of the current milit...