Lebanon on Saturday denied reports that several European countries have asked their envoys to leave the country amid fears of military escalation between Hezbollah and Israel in light of the ongoing Gaza war.

Minister of Information Ziad Makary said in a statement that several websites are reporting “baseless news, claiming that European countries, including Germany, Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, France, Britain, Italy, and Spain, are withdrawing their ambassadors from Lebanon.”

Spreading “false news” is part of the “psychological warfare, which the Israeli enemy often resorts to and fuels by various means,” Makary said in the statement that was carried by the Lebanese foreign ministry.

He urged media outlets to fact-check information before carrying the news, describing the current phase in which the country is passing through a “highly delicate phase.”

Concerns have recently mounted that the escalation of cross-border attacks between Hezbollah and Israel would turn into a full-fledged war.

Hezbollah, an ally of the Palestinian militant group Hamas, began trading fire with Israel across the southern border in the aftermath of the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel.

Hezbollah chief Hasan Nasrallah last week threatened Cyprus, the neighboring Mediterranean nation, that it would be considered part of the ongoing conflict if it opened its airports and bases to Israel.

The threats to the island nation further added tension to the volatile regional situation.

Cyprus brushed off Nasrallah’s accusations saying that it is part of the solution and not the problem.