Christian Villages Reject Netanyahu's Claims, Reaffirm Loyalty to Lebanon
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has sparked controversy in an interview with Fox News by claiming that “some Christian villages in Lebanon asked Israel to annex them.”
Responding to the remarks, Christian political and community figures from southern Lebanon dismissed the claim as “completely false,” telling Nidaa Al Watan that the region's Christian villages remain firmly committed to the Lebanese state. They said that despite the severe challenges they face, their attachment to their identity, history, and Lebanon has only grown stronger, noting that they have made sacrifices for more than a century to preserve the Lebanese identity of the South.
The figures also recalled the campaign led by Christian villages to ensure that the Lebanese Army and security forces remained deployed in their communities as a reaffirmation of state authority.
They further pointed to a previous joint statement issued by municipalities, mukhtars, and local leaders from the Christian villages, which categorically denied media reports claiming that representatives of those villages had approached Israeli officials to request annexation and Israeli citizenship.
