Lebanon has denounced what it calls Israel’s plans for “a new occupation of Lebanese territory”, after Israel said it would establish a “security zone” in the country, reports AFP.

Defence Minister Major General Michel Menassa said the remarks by his counterpart Israel Katz were “no longer mere threats”, but reflected “a clear intention to impose a new occupation of Lebanese territory, forcibly displace hundreds of thousands of citizens, and systematically destroy villages and towns in the south”.

Katz also said Israel would have “security control” up to the Litani river, an idea which Menassa denounced as “a deepening of the aggression against Lebanese land and national sovereignty”.