Israel, Lebanon agree on countries to monitor Hezbollah disarmament deal
The United States has been trying to broker an end to fighting between Israel and the Iran-backed Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, which has raged since March.
Lebanon and Israel have agreed upon a list of potential countries that could monitor Hezbollah's disarmament under a US-brokered agreement, according to a Lebanese official. The United States is expected to select countries from this list, though the number of countries is undisclosed. Earlier, France was vetoed by Israel and the United States.
The shortlist was produced during recent meetings between Lebanon and Israel at the US embassy in Rome, which are the latest talks on implementing a June 26 deal. This deal ties Israel's troop withdrawal from Lebanon to Hezbollah's disarmament, which must be verified by a third party. It is important to note that Hezbollah is not a party to this agreement and has refused to disarm.
The Lebanese official mentioned that they have identified countries that are impossible for each and determined the potential actors. The United States will make the final decision on the shortlist. Israel's foreign ministry has not yet commented on the shortlist. The US State Department spokesperson stated that the talks were productive on technical and expert levels but did not provide additional details.
The US has been working to resolve the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, which has been ongoing since March. The conflict intensified on February 28 after the US and Israel attacked Iran in response to Iran's aggression. In retaliation, Hezbollah attacked Israel, leading to Israel's aerial bombardment and ground invasion into Lebanon.
This invasion displaced over a million Lebanese civilians. The Lebanese official expressed disappointment in Beirut's rejection of a previous proposal to use private security companies as the third-party verifier. Instead, they are considering various options, including a framework for foreign troops' presence in Lebanon, possibly under a UN peacekeeping force, or a memorandum of understanding with Lebanon.
However, they have yet to agree on the next area of withdrawal for Israeli troops, allowing Lebanese forces to take control. The Lebanese official suggested that this issue would be discussed in the upcoming round of talks scheduled for early September.
Written by urgent.news from Jerusalem Post's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
