DUBAI: Israel won’t withdraw from southern Lebanon until Hezbollah is disarmed, the defense minister said on Thursday, qualifying remarks he made a day earlier that had suggested Israeli forces would occupy the territory indefinitely and drew US criticism.
Israel seized a swath of south Lebanon during a war with Hezbollah earlier this year and has said it will keep forces there to shield northern Israel from attack by the Iran-backed group, which ignited the latest hostilities when it opened fire at Israel two days into the US-Israeli war on Iran.
Israel’s offensive uprooted hundreds of thousands of Lebanese, most of them members of Hezbollah’s Shiite Muslim constituency.
During a visit to southern Lebanon on Wednesday, Defense Minister Israel Katz said he and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had been “unequivocally clear” that “we are not withdrawing from this security zone,” adding, “we will cleanse this area and ensure the security of the northern residents.”
The Trump administration has criticized Katz’s comments to keeps troops in southern Lebanon, as his declarations contravened commitments made by the Israeli government under the agreement signed with the US and Lebanon.
“The United States expects all parties to act in accordance with the framework agreement they have agreed upon, and Israel has clearly stated that it has no territorial aspirations in Lebanon,” Axios journalist Barak Ravid posted on social media, quoting a senior official in the US State Department.
“A permanent Israeli military presence in southern Lebanon is inconsistent with the commitments given in the framework agreement and does not align with the long-term peace and security of both countries.”
The senior US State Department official noted that the United States fully supports Lebanon's territorial integrity and sovereignty.
Katz and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have repeatedly vowed not to withdraw from the “security zone” in southern Lebanon — a strip of territory where Israeli forces operate that reaches around 10 kilometers into the country.
The US-sponsored framework deal that involves the disarmament of the Iran-backed Hezbollah, a gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from Lebanon’s south and the deployment of the Lebanese army to the region, starting in test areas known as “pilot zones.”
“The framework agreement clearly includes a path based on meeting conditions, under which gradual redeployments of the IDF will take place, subject to Hezbollah's disarmament and the destruction of its infrastructure in a verifiable manner. The Lebanese army is currently implementing the first pilot zones, and the United States will continue to support the full implementation of this process,” the senior US State Department official said.
Katz, during a tour in southern Lebanon, said that the Israeli occupation in southern Lebanon will continue without a time limit.
“The IDF is here to stay in the security zones in Lebanon, Syria, and Gaza and to protect the entire State of Israel. I have instructed the IDF to take all necessary steps to prepare for a long-term stay in the field. As the Prime Minister and I have clearly stated - we are not withdrawing from this security zone,” said Katz.
Katz’s statement echoed recent remarks by Netanyahu on Gaza and Hamas. On Sunday, Netanyahu said that US President Donald Trump’s latest Gaza roadmap was “unacceptable” and that Israel would not withdraw before Hamas is disarmed.
The US-brokered deal between Lebanon and Israel leaves Israeli troops inside Lebanon until Hezbollah is disarmed and the Lebanese military takes control of the south, a process involving “pilot zones.”
The US State Department official said the Lebanese military was implementing the first pilot zones and Washington “will continue to support full implementation of that process.”
With Reuters
