Lebanon plans to seek compensation from Israel for damages from last summer’s war. Lebanese Finance Minister Jihad Azour said Monday that his country was preparing a lawsuit to be filed against Israel in an unspecified international forum.
“We want to seek reparation, first of all, for the principle that you cannot kill 1,400 individuals, most of them civilians, displace so many people and destroy the economy without being asked for reparations,” Azour said during a visit to Washington. He did not specify any amount his country would be seeking.
Israel, with U.S. support, has rejected suggestions it could be liable for the damage suffered by Lebanon, since Hezbollah, a member of the Lebanese Cabinet, began the war with a cross-border raid that left eight Israeli soldiers dead and two captive. Israel says it acted in self-defense against the Hezbollah aggression.
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