Israeli army kills five in Lebanon during US envoy's Beirut visit to push for Hezbollah disarmament

Several targets belonging to Hezbollah in the Bekaa area attacked in eastern Lebanon

Morgan Ortagus, US deputy special envoy for the Middle East, has returned to the Lebanese capital for talks on the progress of a plan for Hezbollah disarmament. Reuters

At least five people were killed in eastern Lebanon on Monday following Israeli air strikes, according to Lebanon's Health Ministry.

"The Israeli enemy strikes on the Bekaa and the outskirts of Hermel led to a preliminary toll of five dead and five others wounded," the ministry said, noting that the toll could rise.

The Israeli army said it has struck several "terror" targets belonging to Hezbollah in the Bekaa area in eastern Lebanon, adding that the attack included "Radwan force" military training compounds in which Hezbollah militants were identified and where weapons were stored.

The compounds "were used by the Hezbollah ... for training and preparing" militants "to plan and execute attacks" against Israeli troops, it said.

The strikes come as US envoy Morgan Ortagus is visiting Beirut as part of a push to disarm Hezbollah, despite the Iran-backed group having firmly rejected any plans to do so.

The visit comes after a stormy cabinet session on Friday, when the Lebanese army presented its plan to rid Hezbollah of its weapons “according to the means available”, prompting five Shiite ministers to walk out.

On Sunday, Ms Ortagus, who visited Beitut last month, joined newly appointed US Central Command chief Admiral Brad Cooper, who had arrived in Lebanon after his first trip to Israel, for a meeting of the committee overseeing the ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel.

The committee, created as part of the truce that in November brought months of war between Hezbollah and Israel to an end, also features representatives from the Lebanese and Israeli armies, France and Unifil, the UN peacekeeping force in south Lebanon.

After the meeting held in Ras Naqoura in the country’s far south, the US officials toured the border dividing Lebanon and Israel on a Lebanese army helicopter.

The US has urged Lebanon to seize a “historic” opportunity to assert the state’s monopoly on weapons, building on Hezbollah’s weakened state after 13 months of conflict with Israel left the group in tatters.

Last month, the government entrusted the army with drafting a road map to place all weapons under state control, including Hezbollah’s.

But the army, wary of direct confrontation with the influential group, has been reluctant to set a deadline for putting the plan in place – a move Hezbollah appeared to welcome.

Lebanon's President Joseph Aoun, right, receives Admiral Brad Cooper, new head of US Central Command, at the presidential palace in Baabda. AFP

Lebanese authorities have also asked the US to ensure the ceasefire mechanism's full implementation, denouncing Israeli violations despite Lebanon’s compliance with the terms of the deal.

During a meeting on Saturday with Mr Cooper at the presidential palace, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun reiterated his call for the US to pressure Israel into withdrawing from territory it occupies in the south, allowing the Lebanese army to complete its deployment at the border.

Under the terms of the truce, the Israeli army is required to withdraw from all occupied positions in southern Lebanon and halt violations of Lebanese airspace, while Hezbollah is to dismantle its infrastructure starting south of the Litani River, 30km from the border.

But despite the agreement, Israel continues to strike southern Lebanon almost daily, killing more than 300 people since November. It has made clear it expects the Lebanese army to launch the plan to disarm Hezbollah before it withdraws from the five strategic positions where its forces remain.

Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem reaffirmed the group will not discuss disarmament until Israel withdraws from Lebanese territory, stops its military actions and releases detainees.