By Elham Asaad Buaras
London, (The Muslim News): UN experts warn that Israel’s military actions in Lebanon may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity, while Britain’s Defence Secretary Wes Streeting stands by his previous accusations that Israel has committed war crimes.
Meanwhile, the UK temporarily withdraws diplomatic staff from Iran as Tehran exchanges fresh warnings with Washington over the Strait of Hormuz, Israeli military operations continue in southern Lebanon despite a withdrawal agreement, and the United States signs a landmark civilian nuclear cooperation agreement with Saudi Arabia.
UN EXPERTS RAISE ALARM OVER LEBANON
A group of UN experts warns that Israel’s military actions in Lebanon may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity amid reports of forced displacement and attacks on civilians.
In a statement, the experts say Israel’s “immediate displacement orders” in Lebanon resemble those issued in Gaza.
They say credible reports indicate civilians have been forcibly displaced, tens of thousands have been prevented from returning home and additional Lebanese territory has been occupied.
“Evacuation is an exceptional and strictly temporary measure,” the experts say.
“It may only be used to protect the safety of civilians or for imperative military reasons, not to depopulate and occupy areas.”
The experts stress that displaced civilians have the right to return voluntarily and safely once the circumstances justifying their displacement cease.
They say an estimated 620,000 women and girls have been displaced since March, including around 16,000 pregnant women, many of whom have reportedly given birth in overcrowded and unsafe conditions following the destruction of health facilities and maternity services.
The experts also express alarm over allegations that white phosphorus munitions have been used over residential areas, exposing civilians to severe burns, respiratory injuries and long-term health risks.
According to the experts, more than 4,300 people have reportedly been killed in Lebanon since hostilities escalated on March 2, including at least 392 women and 253 children, while more than 12,000 others have been injured.
“Taken together, Israel’s military actions constitute a violation of international humanitarian law and its principles of distinction, proportionality and precautions in attack, as well as the prohibition on indiscriminate attacks, and may also amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity,” they say.
The experts urge Israel and all parties to comply with international law and call for the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and the 2024 cessation of hostilities arrangement, while urging respect for Lebanon’s sovereignty.
FIGHTING CONTINUES DESPITE WITHDRAWAL FRAMEWORK
The warning comes as Israeli military operations continue across southern Lebanon despite a framework agreement intended to facilitate a gradual Israeli withdrawal.
Lebanon’s National News Agency reports intermittent Israeli artillery shelling on Ali al-Taher hill on the outskirts of Nabatieh al-Fawqa, while an Israeli drone strikes the town.
The agency also reports that Israeli forces advance to the outskirts of Burj al-Muluk, where troops raid a man’s home, search it, confiscate his passport after checking his phone and question him before withdrawing.
Another Israeli force enters the border town of Sarbin amid bursts of heavy machine-gun fire, while overnight explosions are reported in Baraachit and Hadatha.
The Lebanese army says its units have deployed in Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh under the first phase of the June 26 framework agreement with Israel, adding that Israeli forces open fire near its units during the deployment, endangering soldiers and obstructing the mission.
The agreement provides for a gradual Israeli withdrawal from parts of southern Lebanon in exchange for the deployment of the Lebanese army.
According to Lebanon’s Health Ministry, Israel’s offensive has killed 4,328 people and injured 12,230 others since March 2. Israel continues to occupy areas in southern Lebanon despite the agreement, including territory it has held for decades and land seized during the current offensive.
STREETING STANDS BY CRITICISM OF ISRAEL
The renewed scrutiny of Israel’s military conduct is also reflected in Britain, where Defence Secretary Wes Streeting says he will not distance himself from previous remarks accusing Israel of committing war crimes.
Speaking to journalists at the Farnborough International Airshow, Streeting said Israel must be judged by the same standards applied to Britain and its allies while maintaining that the country has the right to defend itself.
Asked whether he still stands by his previous comments, Streeting replies, “I have expressed very clearly my concerns about Israel’s actions in Gaza and the West Bank. My comments are there. They are published. They are on the record. I am not going to pretend I didn’t make those comments.”
Previously published messages also see Streeting accuse the Israeli government of using the language of ethnic cleansing and behaving like a “rogue state”.
“But I also hold Israel, as a friend and ally, to the same standard that we hold ourselves to,” he says.
“That is the standard which should be applied to Israel. That is the standard that I think, I fear, they have fallen short of.”
Asked whether Britain should continue purchasing Israeli weapons, Streeting says decisions on procurement, trade agreements and diplomatic relations are taken through established government processes rather than by him alone.
The ceasefire, which has been in force since Oct. 10, 2025, repeatedly comes under strain from Israeli airstrikes, ground incursions and restrictions on humanitarian aid entering Gaza.
According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, Israeli violations of the ceasefire have killed 1,158 Palestinians and injured 3,756 others.
The Israeli offensive, launched on Oct. 8, 2023, has killed more than 73,000 Palestinians, injured more than 173,000 others and damaged or destroyed around 90% of Gaza’s civilian infrastructure.
BRITAIN WITHDRAWS EMBASSY STAFF FROM IRAN AS TENSIONS ESCALATE
Elsewhere, Britain temporarily withdraws diplomatic staff from Iran as tensions between Tehran and Washington continue to rise.
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office says the move is a precautionary measure prompted by the security situation.
“Due to the ongoing security situation, we have taken the precautionary measure to temporarily withdraw UK staff from Iran. Our embassy continues to operate remotely,” the FCDO says.
The department reiterates its advice against all travel to Iran, warning that British and dual British-Iranian nationals face “a very high risk of arrest, detention and questioning” and that “holding a British passport or having perceived connections to the UK can be reason enough for the Iranian authorities to detain you.”
It also warns the wider security situation in the Middle East remains “unpredictable”.
The move comes as Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warns that any attack on Iran’s infrastructure will trigger a “powerful and decisive” response.
“Our defence doctrine is clear: eye for an eye,” Araghchi writes on X.
“Any aggression against Iran, including our infrastructure, will compel a powerful and decisive response.”
He adds that countries supporting such attacks will also be considered “legitimate targets”.
His remarks follow warnings from US President Donald Trump that Washington will strike Iranian bridges or power plants if Tehran attacks commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf echoes the warning, saying no country in the region will be able to sell oil if Iran is prevented from doing so.
“In a region where we cannot sell oil, no one will sell oil,” he writes.
Qalibaf also argues that security in the Strait of Hormuz depends on the absence of US forces and warns that conditions in the strategic waterway will not return to their pre-war state.
Meanwhile, Iran’s Health Ministry says US airstrikes carried out since June 27 have killed 53 people and wounded 592 others.
According to ministry spokesman Hussein Kermanpour, 535 of those injured have since been discharged, while 36 remain in hospital.
The exchange of attacks continues despite a Pakistani-brokered framework agreement signed in June aimed at ending the conflict between Washington and Tehran.
US SIGNS SAUDI NUCLEAR AGREEMENT
Against the backdrop of heightened regional tensions, the United States also signed a civilian nuclear cooperation agreement with Saudi Arabia.
US Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman sign the so-called 123 Agreement together with a bilateral safeguards agreement.
The US Energy Department says the agreements establish the legal basis for a “decades-long, multi-billion-dollar partnership” covering commercial ties, energy cooperation and nuclear non-proliferation.
“These agreements reflect our two nations’ shared commitment to strengthening US-Saudi commercial relations, delivering prosperity at home and security to our allies abroad,” Wright says.
“Rest assured, these agreements uphold the highest standards of nuclear safety and nonproliferation, while relying on the world’s best nuclear technology and scientists, designed right here in the United States.”
The agreement will now be transmitted to Congress for review.
[Photo: Displaced Palestinian families, uprooted by ongoing intensive Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip, take shelter in the severely damaged Al-Furqan Mosque in Khan Yunis, Gaza, Palestine on July 23, 2026. Deprived of basic necessities, civilians living in the damaged building are struggling with poor hygienic conditions and health issues caused by rodents and pests. Photojournalist: Abed Rahim Khatib/AA]
