Nawaf Salam, Prime Minister of Lebanon and former President of the International Court of Justice, said in an interview with CNN in Dubai this week that his country's normalization of relations with Israel would only be possible through a two-state solution that includes the creation of a Palestinian state.
"I would like to see a two-state solution, Israel withdrawing from the occupied territories in exchange for peace, and that peace will lead to normalization. Normalization is part of the vision."
Salam also said during the interview that Israel's presence "in parts of southern Lebanon is undermining Beirut’s attempts to restore sovereignty," and added that he would like the US to pressure Israel to withdraw from the five outposts that it established a few hundred meters from the border.
الرئيس نواف سلام: التطبيع جزء لا يتجزأ من السلام الذي "نرغب في رؤيته غدًا وليس بعده".#وقائع pic.twitter.com/b3H4Iaw4UD
— وقائع (@waqa2e3) May 30, 2025
“Israeli presence in Lebanon is a red line for everyone. This is not a red line for Hezbollah alone,” he added in the interview.
Salam's earlier statements on Israel this week
He previously did an interview with Sky News Arabia this week, and told the source that his government would not be cooperating closely with Iran, and said that Lebanon would only consider peace with Israel if it was "real peace."
“We are a peace-seeking nation, but we want a real peace. Israel is occupying territories that belong to our country,” he said.
Salam was appointed prime minister in January, with his ascent to the position being met with opposition from Hezbollah. As ICJ president, he initially presided over South Africa’s ongoing genocide case against Israel.
Yonah Jeremy Bob, Amichai Stein, and Steve Ganot/The Media Line contributed to this report.