Israel, Amos Hochstein and Lebanon
U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein has told Lebanon that the United States has not received any message from Israel about an intention to keep Israeli forces in south Lebanon beyond January 27, informed sources said.
Hochstein confirmed that Israeli troops have started pulling back from Naqoura, a town near the U.N.-demarcated Blue Line, and returning to Israeli territory. He emphasized that the withdrawals would continue until all Israeli forces leave Lebanon, while the Lebanese Army takes over security responsibilities in coordination with U.N. peacekeepers.
It is the second such pullout since a Nov 27 ceasefire, and came after United Nations peacekeepers and Lebanon’s prime minister late last month called on the Israeli army to speed up its withdrawal from Lebanon’s south.
The Biden administration in its final days is shifting more than $100 million in military aid from Israel and Egypt to Lebanon as it tries to bolster a ceasefire agreement it helped mediate between Israel and Hezbollah.
Israeli troops withdrew from the southern Lebanese town of Naqoura on Monday, amid growing accusations from both sides of major violations of the Israel, Hezbollah ceasefire.
Lebanon is geared to select a new president this week as the army has made significant strides in taking over for IDF troops deployed in southern Lebanon
Israel and Hezbollah agreed to pull their forces out of southern Lebanon before the end of January. The area will then be secured by the Lebanese army and UN peacekeepers, as part of the agreed conditions of the ceasefire.
An Israeli official told The Post that plans for the withdrawal of the IDF “don’t change the fact that after the ceasefire terminates, Israeli forces will need to remain in southern Lebanon.”
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US envoy Amos Hochstein said on Monday that he was happy to see the Israeli army withdraw from the western sector of Lebanon back to Israel. In a news conference in Lebanon following meetings with top Lebanese officials,
U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein announced the withdrawal of the Israeli army from the western sector of Lebanon, stating it is a positive development. Speaking in Lebanon, he confirmed that withdrawals will persist until the Israeli forces have fully vacated the area.