Lebanon president says Israeli blasts near castle 'direct threat' to recent deal

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said Friday that Israeli army detonations near a UNESCO-listed castle in the south were a "direct threat" to a recent deal agreed with Israel, which said its troops had demolished Hezbollah tunnels there.

Lebanon's National News Agency (NNA) reported that "Israeli forces triggered very powerful explosions" overnight, specifically "in the area of the Beaufort fortress", a Crusader-era castle located in an area near the border occupied by Israel.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz said the army had destroyed "terror tunnels in the Beaufort area" using approximately 700 tonnes of explosives.

Aoun called the explosions "an extremely dangerous escalation and a clear violation of existing commitments", according to a statement from his office, as well as "a direct threat to the process which was launched as part of the framework agreement" reached with Israel during US-sponsored talks last month.

Under the Israel-Lebanon deal, Lebanon's army is to disarm Hezbollah and the Israeli military is to withdraw from "pilot zones" where Lebanese forces will subsequently deploy.

The timing of the blasts ahead of another round of talks with Israel in Rome next week "sends negative messages and undermines international efforts aimed at consolidating stability", Aoun added.

The NNA said huge blasts resounded over a large area, shattering glass in nearby villages, while an AFP correspondent heard large explosions and saw dust covering a swathe of forest area.

Citing Lebanon's National Centre for Geophysics, Aoun's statement said the detonations "created ground waves equivalent to a 3.8 magnitude earthquake on the Richter scale".

- 'Under occupation' -

Beaufort castle was added last week to UNESCO's List of World Heritage in Danger.

Lebanon's culture ministry said the explosions struck "the area opposite the fortress", warning that "the vibrations from the explosions may have caused damage" in the castle's vicinity.

It said technical teams were unable to conduct an on-the-ground assessment because "the site is under occupation".

The Israeli army said that "the tunnel network served as a central command centre" for Hezbollah and consisted of "several underground levels that were built over the course of two decades".

Netanyahu and Katz said the explosions followed a "blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement" by Hezbollah, after Israel's army on Wednesday accused the group of launching an explosive drone at an Israeli military vehicle in southern Lebanon.

Lebanese parliament speaker Nabih Berri, a Hezbollah ally, condemned the detonations, while the Iran-backed group urged Lebanese authorities to act "at all political and diplomatic levels to stop the destructive crimes being carried out by the enemy".

Hezbollah has not claimed any attacks since a ceasefire with Israel came into force on June 20 after a US-Iran memorandum of understanding on ending the broader Middle East war.

While violence has declined in Lebanon since the memorandum and after the Lebanon-Israel framework deal, Lebanon continues to report Israeli strikes and artillery shelling on the south, as well as detonations of buildings in southern villages.

Iran-backed Hezbollah drew Lebanon into the Middle East war on March 2 with attacks on Israel.

Israel retaliated with a massive bombing campaign and a ground offensive that Lebanese authorities say have killed more than 4,300 people.

Israel's army continues to occupy areas of southern Lebanon extending about 10 kilometres (six miles) into Lebanese territory along the border.