Israeli forces begin withdrawal from southern Lebanon
Israeli troops started withdrawing from southern Lebanon on Wednesday as part of the ceasefire agreement signed with Hezbollah last month.
The US Central Command (Centcom) said that US Army General Michael Kurilla visited Beirut to monitor the withdrawal, while the Lebanese army takes over the area.
Centcom said Kurilla was monitoring “the ongoing first Israeli Defense Forces [army] withdrawal and Lebanese Armed Forces replacement in Al Khiam, Lebanon, as part of the agreement”.
Kurilla called it “an important first step in the implementation of a lasting cessation of hostilities and lays the foundation for continued progress”.
Khiam, a town known for its history of resistance to Israel's 18-year occupation of southern Lebanon, saw heavy battles between Hezbollah and Israel in the latest war, with Israeli forces failing to fully capture it but retaining its positions after signing the ceasefire agreement.
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Hezbollah and Israel had been engaging in cross-border clashes since October 2023 following the outbreak of the war on Gaza.
The situation escalated into a full-blown war in September, when Israel launched a widespread bombing campaign and ground invasion of Lebanon before agreeing to a temporary ceasefire in November.
As part of Israel and Hezbollah’s 60-day truce, Israel is supposed to withdraw from Lebanese territories while Hezbollah stations itself north of the Litani River, leaving the Lebanese army and the UN’s peacekeeping forces to take over.
Israel has been accused of several violations of the ceasefire agreement, having continued to conduct sporadic strikes on sourthern Lebanon, killing a number of Lebanese, while keeping its drones and warplanes above Beirut.
Additionally, the Israeli army says it remains deployed in other areas of southern Lebanon and will act against what it deems are threats to its security.
Nonetheless, the Lebanese government along with international observers remain hopeful that the ceasefire holds, leading to a more permanent cessation of hostilities should the terms be properly implemented.
The US and France are serving as monitors between Israel and Hezbollah.
Israel’s attacks on Lebanon killed more than 4,000 people in over a year, 84 percent of them between September and November.
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