Lebanese army begins pilot‑zone deployment after Israeli pulls back
Lebanese troops have moved into the village of Zawtar al‑Gharbiyeh in the Nabatieh district, the first step in a pilot‑zone plan agreed last month between Lebanon, Israel and the United States. The move comes after U.S.–brokered talks led to a unilateral Israeli withdrawal from a 10‑km strip that runs along the southern border.
The army’s engineering units entered the village on Tuesday morning, according to the Lebanese armed forces command. The Israeli Defence Forces fired warning shots into the air when the troops and an engineering vehicle breached the barriers in the neighbouring zone of Zawtar al‑Sharqiyeh, but no combat injuries were reported.
Lebanese soldiers are now carrying out missions in nearby villages of Froun and Srifa, following the state department announcement that pilot‑zone operations had begun. The deployment is meant to pave the way for the Lebanese army to take full control of areas presently under Hezbollah influence, a goal that Israel has said it will not fully concede until the militia is disarmed.
On Monday, President Joseph Aoun met with U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington, where Aoun urged the United States to press Israel for a complete withdrawal and to provide political support. Trump promised help for Lebanon and indicated that he would speak directly to Hezbollah representatives if requested.
The agreement, signed in June, links a gradual Israeli pull‑back to the disarmament of Hezbollah. The Lebanese militia remains opposed, claiming the conditions cross “all red lines.”
