Lebanese and Israeli military delegations will meet in the coming days to set a timetable for establishing two pilot zones in south Lebanon where the Israeli military will eventually withdraw, Lebanese political and security sources told The National on Wednesday.
“We told them [to begin] as soon as possible, and they [the Israeli side] said they would decide at the next military meeting,” the political source said. “This is what we’re demanding. But we think the Israelis may try to drag this out.”
The decision to implement a timetable was made as the sixth round of US-brokered direct talks between the two countries concluded in Rome on Wednesday. A US State Department official described them as "two days of productive and positive discussions".
"We agreed on the structure and guidelines for the pilot zone process, to be finalised and implemented in the coming days," they said. "We will now move to expanded technical talks."
Both sides agreed last month to the creation of pilot areas in south Lebanon, in which Hezbollah would be disarmed, Israeli troops would withdraw, and the Lebanese state would extend its authority.
However, despite progress over the six rounds of negotiations, the plan has yet to be implemented. Israeli negotiators have made it contingent on resolving the issue of third-party verification.
“Who will verify the army's progress after it goes in and conducts its work? Of course, we'd prefer for the monitoring body to be connected to the United Nations,” the Lebanese political source said. “But if that's not possible, and the Americans have another formula, that's not a problem either.”
“What matters is that it be established as quickly as possible. We don't want to sit around waiting for a month or two before [pilot zone implementation] can happen.”
On the ground, the Israeli army has continued daily attacks on southern Lebanon – including near the proposed pilot zones – while demolishing homes and villages in the dozens of towns and villages it occupies. The army says it is detonating Hezbollah infrastructure.
Major explosions were reported in the south Lebanese town of Khiam early on Wednesday. Lebanon's National News Agency reported “a huge bombing” at 3am in Khiam, a strategic and highly symbolic town that is occupied by Israel.
The first day of talks in Rome on Tuesday coincided with an increase in Israeli strikes on one of the proposed pilot zones. Eastern and western Zawtar, Kafr Tibnit and the Ali Taher ridge in Nabatieh province have all come under intensified Israeli attacks in recent days, a security source said.
Israel has so far shown no indication that it intends to withdraw from the areas it agreed to vacate during the previous round of negotiations on June 26, when the US-brokered pilot plan was conceived.
On Tuesday a security source told The National that the army had “observed the arson of homes and the systematic destruction of the neighbourhoods where [Israeli troops] are present. Whether they're getting ready to withdraw or deepening their presence – it's not clear”.
Hezbollah, which would have to disarm within the zones, has publicly rejected the agreement, while Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz last week said the country's forces would remain in southern Lebanon for “as long as necessary”.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said on Wednesday that the “Lebanon file” was on the desk of his US counterpart Donald Trump, signalling greater American interest. Washington's mediation and intervention has been seen as vital in hammering out the framework agreement, even if it remains unimplemented.
“The path is not paved and holds difficulties, but hope is great for achieving results that end the bloodshed,” Mr Aoun said.
