Paris submitted a written proposal to Beirut with a cessation of hostilities with Israel and settling the disputed Lebanon-Israel frontier, including a Hezbollah retreat of 10 kilometres (6 miles) from the border, Reuters reported.
The document was handed over by French Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné to top Lebanese government officials, including Prime Minister Najib Mikati. Séjourné called for preventing a conflict “that risks spiralling out of control” and securing “a potential ceasefire, when the conditions are right.”
We made proposals. We are in contact with the Americans and it’s important that we bring together all initiatives and build peace.
Hezbollah refuses formal de-escalation talks until the war in Gaza ends, one of the group’s politicians has confirmed. The plan calls for Lebanese armed groups and Israel to halt military operations against each other, including Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon. Hezbollah is considered the dominant force in the area, and its fighting power is widely believed to be superior in weaponry to the Lebanese army.
The document also proposes that Lebanese armed groups dismantle all premises and facilities near the border and withdraw combat forces, including Hezbollah’s elite Radwan fighters
Up to 15,000 Lebanese army troops would be stationed in the border region of southern Lebanon, where Hezbollah fighters have long mingled with the local population. Senior Hezbollah politician Hassan Fadlallah stated:
The enemy is not in the position to impose conditions.
French officials told the Lebanese that it was not a final document after Beirut raised objections to some parts of it, a Lebanese official reported. He said several elements had raised concerns in Beirut, including the armed groups’ demand to dismantle premises and facilities near the border, which the official claimed was vaguely drafted and could be used to demand action against Hezbollah-affiliated civilian institutions.
Israeli strikes in Lebanon killed about 200 people, 170 of them were Hezbollah fighters. Attacks from Lebanon in Israel have killed 10 soldiers and five civilians. However, the strikes have mostly hit areas near the border, with both sides stating they want to avoid a full-scale war.
The French proposal resembles the cease-fire that ended the 1996 war between Hezbollah and Israel, as well as UN Security Council Resolution 1701 that ended the 2006 war.
The plan envisages three phases within 10 days. During the first stage, both sides will cease military operations. In the second phase, Lebanese armed groups will withdraw their combat forces at least 10 kilometres north of the border, while Lebanon will begin stationing soldiers in the south. Israel will stop flights into Lebanese territory.
As a third step, Lebanon and Israel will resume negotiations on the delimitation of the land border within 10 days “in a gradual way” and with the support of the UN peacekeeping force UNIFIL.
