TEL AVIV: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he welcomed the Lebanese cabinet’s “momentous decision” earlier this month to work towards the disarmament of Hezbollah by the end of 2025 and it could lead to Israel's troops withdrawing from the country.
He said that if Lebanon takes the necessary steps to disarm Hezbollah, then Israel will respond with reciprocal measures, including a phased reduction of the Israeli military presence in southern Lebanon.
Since the Israel-Hezbollah war ended in November with a U.S.-brokered ceasefire, Hezbollah officials have said the group will not discuss its disarmament until Israel withdraws from five hills it controls inside Lebanon and stops almost daily airstrikes that have killed or wounded hundreds of people, most of them Hezbollah members.
Beirut is under U.S. pressure to disarm the group that recently fought a 14-month war with Israel and was left gravely weakened, with many of its political and military leaders dead.
Netanyahu says Israel could withdraw from Lebanon if Hezbollah is disarmed
https://arab.news/64724
Netanyahu says Israel could withdraw from Lebanon if Hezbollah is disarmed
- Israel says it is ready to support Lebanon in disarming Hezbollah
Iraq election result ratified by Supreme Federal Court
- The Independent High Electoral Commission submitted the final results of the legislative elections to the Supreme Federal Court on Monday for official certification after resolving 853 complaints submitted regarding the election results
BAGHDAD: The result of last month’s parliamentary elections in Iraq was ratified by the Supreme Federal Court on Sunday, confirming that the party of caretaker Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani won the largest number of seats — but not enough to assure him a second term.
The court confirmed that the voting process met all constitutional and legal requirements and contained no irregularities that would affect its validity.
The Independent High Electoral Commission submitted the final results of the legislative elections to the Supreme Federal Court on Monday for official certification after resolving 853 complaints submitted regarding the election results.
FASTFACT
Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani’s Reconstruction and Development Coalition won 46 seats in the 329-seat parliament.
Al-Sudani’s Reconstruction and Development Coalition won 46 seats in the 329-seat parliament.
However, in past elections in Iraq, the bloc that won the most seats has often been unable to impose its preferred candidate.
The coalition led by former Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki won 29 seats, the Sadiqoun Bloc, which is led by the leader of the Asaib Ahl Al-Haq militia, Qais Al-Khazali, won 28 seats, and the Kurdistan Democratic Party, led by Masoud Barzani, one of the two main Kurdish parties in the country, won 27 seats.
The Taqaddum (Progress) party of ousted former Parliament Speaker Mohammed Al-Halbousi also won 27 seats, setting the stage for a contest over the speaker’s role.
Overall, Shiite alliances and lists secured 187 seats, Sunni groups 77 seats, Kurdish groups 56 seats, and nine seats reserved for minority groups.
Al-Sudani came to power in 2022 with the backing of the Coordination Framework, a coalition of Iran-backed Shiite parties, but it is unclear whether the alliance will support him again.
With no single bloc able to form a government alone, political leaders have launched negotiations to build a ruling coalition.
