Amid Israeli Bombings, Saudi Arabia, Egypt Call on Lebanon to Assert “Full Sovereignty”

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan and his Egyptian counterpart Dr. Badr Al-Abdalaty have called upon Lebanon to assert “full sovereignty over its territory and carry out its responsibilities through its official institutions.”

In a phone call on Friday, "the two ministers discussed the situation in Lebanon and the escalating Israeli actions in the region. Both ministers expressed deep concern over Israel's increasing aggression in Lebanon and reaffirmed their full solidarity with the Lebanese people during this crisis," Saudi Gazette reported.

The Saudi-Egypt assertion came after Israeli strikes sealed off Lebanon's main border crossing with Syria early on Friday and the inability of the Lebanese government to respond to the repeated Israeli attacks on its territory.

Lebanese Transport Minister Ali Hamieh said Friday's strike on the Syrian border hit inside Lebanese territory near the crossing, creating a four-metre (12 feet) wide crater. Some 30,000 Lebanese have crossed over to Syria in the past days to escape Israeli bombings.