Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam has warned against dragging the country into another war as tensions rise across the Middle East, in an apparent message to Iran-backed Hezbollah.

“Amid the risk of renewed war in the region, I reiterate my warning against dragging Lebanon into another senseless adventure in the service of outside interests,” Salam said after meeting President Joseph Aoun.

Salam said Lebanon could not afford another confrontation, stressing that the country and its people had already paid a heavy price.

“The Lebanese people, particularly those in the South, have paid dearly in lives, livelihoods and homes,” he said. “They have the right to live in safety and build their future without being trapped in another cycle of war, displacement and destruction.”

He stressed that protecting Lebanon was a national responsibility that required putting the country’s interests above all other considerations and ensuring that decisions of war and peace remained exclusively in the hands of the state and its constitutional institutions.

“We will not accept the Lebanese people being forced into a fate they did not choose, or Lebanon once again becoming a battleground for other people’s conflicts,” Salam said. “Our duty is to defend the country’s sovereignty, protect its people and do everything we can to spare it another war.”

Salam also condemned any involvement by Lebanese individuals or groups in the internal affairs of other Arab countries, particularly military activities that threaten their security.

“I strongly condemn any Lebanese individuals or groups interfering in the affairs of our Arab brothers, especially through military activities that threaten the security and safety of their countries,” he said, referring in particular to actions recently announced by Yemen’s government.

“Such actions can only damage Lebanon and the interests of its people,” he added, reaffirming Beirut’s commitment to respecting the sovereignty and security of Arab countries and preventing harm to them.

Salam said Lebanon sought to strengthen and develop its ties with Arab states on the basis of mutual trust.