Doha: Lebanese President General Joseph Aoun met Saturday with the member of the US Congress, Darin LaHood, and informed him that Lebanon awaits the final Israeli response to the content put out in the paper of the US Envoy Thomas Barrack, who is due to visit Lebanon on Tuesday.

According to Qatar News Agency, during the meeting, Aoun denied that Lebanon should have been officially notified of what is being circulated in the media about Israel's intention to establish a buffer zone in southern Lebanon. Aoun stressed that it is significant to renew the mission of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) operating in the south.

He noted the dangerous consequences of ending this mission soon, prior to the pullout of the Israeli forces from the south, returning the Lebanese prisoners, finalizing the deployment of the Lebanese military to the internationally recognized borders, and the enforcement of Resolution 1701.