Former Prime Minister Saad Hariri, in a statement, reiterated his support for the Cabinet's decisions, affirming his full backing of the state and its legitimate institutions.

In a statement, Hariri said, "Condemnation is no longer effective in the face of the war into which Lebanon is being forcibly dragged, with no purpose other than depleting and destroying the state and its institutions, and sacrificing the south, Dahieh, and the Bekaa. Amidst the insistence of the Islamic Republic of Iran on transferring its military confrontation with the United States and Israel to the Arab Gulf states, using its strength in non-Arab states in an effort that contributes to undermining the region's stability, I wanted today to address my family, brothers, and sisters, especially the thousands of families who have taken to the roads in the south, at the entrances to Beirut, and in the Bekaa, fleeing Israeli attacks, and Hezbollah's sudden decision in a new support war with multiple shells, which will embroil Lebanon in a devastating war with no benefit.

"My brothers and sisters in the south, the Bekaa, the southern suburbs, and every place in Lebanon that harbors Lebanese Shiites and soothes their wounds, Shiites in Lebanon have long been described as the sect of the state, and their historic role has been and must remain to support the Lebanese state and its institutions and protect national unity from fracture and collapse. You have always been on the front lines defending Lebanon's sovereignty and borders, with tens of thousands of martyrs and injured in your record of sacrifices. Now your country, Lebanon, is facing an unprecedented ordeal due to proxy decision-making and wars that have plunged our country into chaos and division for more than thirty years. Your land is being decimated, your homes destroyed, and your dignities affronted in wars that befall you and in your name, costing us all dearly and costing you the most in the lives of your children, your livelihoods, and your material and moral existence."

Hariri continued, "I appeal to you, through you and with you, to Nabih Berri: History, Mr. Speaker, writes for the greats to take difficult positions in the darkest and most complicated moments, and today you are destined to boldly shoulder your historic responsibilities as you have accustomed us. History will not forgive us, and the people's blood and the future of generations are entrusted upon us, not tolerating a second thought, and I appeal to the sheikhs, those with influential words and rational minds wherever they may be, and all sectors including intellectuals, university students, workers, farmers, politicians, and businessmen. I appeal to our kind-hearted people suffering on the roads, in shelters, and school playgrounds to gather in an urgent rescue initiative that cannot be delayed. I urge you to a unified word that protects Lebanon from falling, misses the opportunity for those plotting against us, and protects the south, Dahieh, and Bekaa from devastation. I urge you to initiate a cry that stops mortgaging Lebanon, its interests, role, history, and national living, not to Iran but to any entity or state that wishes us to be a platform in their private wars.

"Lebanon is calling for you. Lebanon requests from you a historic decision to raise the voice by stopping involvement in futile wars. No national formula will be viable without you. The state without you becomes an amputated state, and the coexistence without you becomes an incomplete national life. Lebanon calls for you because your natural place is between its wings, sharing with your Lebanese brothers in carrying the responsibility of the nation and its safety. The world’s countries can never replace the Lebanese state, and allegiances to external entities should never replace allegiance to Lebanon. It is true that neglect has caused some of us to turn away from the state and resort to external options, and your situation in that is similar to other sects that have not been consistent in some instances, in placing external allegiance over national loyalty, but the responsibility lies with you now, to speak decisively from within the sorrows you live and the tragedy you suffer, a word to your brothers in the homeland that you will not abandon Lebanon and refuse to sacrifice it on the tables of regional conflict."

"The war in our countries is imposed on us, and it's no longer appropriate for us all to remain instruments in others' wars or fuel for these wars," the former Prime Minister concluded. "Remove from the sect the burdens of others, as there is no alternative to the 'Lebanese cloak,' and no substitute for you in the south’s land, we share with you return and rebuilding and lifting the injustice you feel. Together, we will overcome neglect and deprivation and create our present and future."