BEIRUT

In the wake of the assassination of Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah in an Israeli airstrike, the Lebanese army urged citizens on Sunday to uphold national unity and refrain from actions that could disrupt civil peace.

A statement by the Army Command called on the Lebanese “not to fall prey to actions that could harm civil peace," calling the current phase "dangerous and critical" for the country.

“The Israeli enemy is executing its destructive plans and sowing division among the Lebanese people,” it said, vowing to enforce necessary security measures to maintain civil peace.

Nasrallah was killed in an Israeli airstrike in the southern suburb of Beirut on Friday, in a major escalation in warfare between Hezbollah and Israel.

At least 1,673 people have been killed, including 194 women and 104 children, and over 8,600 others injured since the onset of cross-border clashes between Hezbollah and Israel on Oct. 8, 2023, against the backdrop of the Gaza war, according to figures released by the Lebanese Health Ministry.

The international community has warned that Israeli attacks in Lebanon could escalate the ongoing Gaza conflict into a wider regional war.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi in Ankara