The Israeli military is withdrawing from Lebanon but leaving five population centres under its control.
Under a Washington-brokered truce agreement in November, Israeli troops were given 60 days to withdraw from southern Lebanon, where they have been waging a ground offensive against militants of the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah since early October.
The deadline was extended to February 18, but Israeli and Lebanese officials as well as foreign diplomats expected the military to leave some troops on parts of the Lebanese side of the border.
“We need to stay in those locations at the moment to protect Israeli citizens, to make sure that the process is completed and eventually hand it over to the Lebanese Armed Forces,” military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani said in a briefing with reporters, adding that the move was in line with the mechanism of the ceasefire agreement.
He said the localities are close to Israeli settlements or occupy strategic vantage points overlooking Israeli towns such as Metula.
A Lebanese official and two foreign diplomats said Israeli troops were likely to leave villages in southern Lebanon but would remain at checkpoints to reassure northern Israelis who are due to return home on March 1.
Tens of thousands of people have been displaced from northern Israel by Hezbollah rocket attacks, and more than a million people in Lebanon fled Israeli airstrikes in a year-long military conflict that unfolded alongside the Gaza war.
The situation in Lebanon after the declared ceasefire
The fighting ended in late November with a truce ordering Israeli troops to withdraw from southern Lebanon and the Lebanese army to take Hezbollah’s place.
The ceasefire agreement stipulated that only “official military and security forces” in Lebanon could carry weapons and that the Lebanese government must prevent any transfers of weapons or related material to non-state armed groups.
On February 17, the Lebanese government approved a new government programme that stresses the priority of liberating the country’s territories from occupation. Information Minister Paul Morcos said that the government intends to strictly follow all provisions of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and adhere to a policy of neutrality to avoid Lebanon’s involvement in regional conflicts. He also emphasised that the state plans to establish controls under which weapons will be exclusively at the disposal of the army and security forces.
