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The Lebanese army command announced that its units entered the village of Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh on Tuesday morning as part of initial steps to implement a pilot zone plan. Operations had already commenced in the nearby villages of Froun and Srifa following a US State Department announcement the previous day. The army directed citizens not to head to Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh until the security situation stabilises and to comply with instructions from deployed units for their own safety.
According to the US State Department the pilot zone operations in the three villages represent a milestone resulting from discussions held last week in Rome between Israeli and Lebanese representatives. The moves align with the Trilateral Framework Agreement signed on June 26 which ties Israeli redeployment to the Lebanese armed forces assuming control and the verified disarmament of non-state armed groups. An Israeli source told Haaretz newspaper that no Israeli troops were present in Froun or Srifa at the time of the Lebanese deployment.
An Israeli military official confirmed that forces would adjust their posture in one of the pilot areas to allow the Lebanese army to carry out its mission while safeguarding the security of IDF soldiers. “The objective of the pilot and the agreement is the disarmament of the Hezbollah terrorist organisation and the removal of its illegal weapons” the official said. The official added that the IDF would remain in the 10-kilometre security zone along the border for as long as necessary to defend northern Israeli communities.
The US State Department release on June 26 outlined a sequenced process in which the Lebanese government commits to rebuilding its monopoly on the use of force through the complete and verified disarmament of all non-state armed groups across the country. i24News reported that Hezbollah rejected the agreement which it said cast doubt on the path to full Israeli withdrawal. President Joseph Aoun is set to meet US President Donald Trump in Washington this week where he intends to press for additional Israeli pullbacks and support for the Lebanese army to extend control over Hezbollah-influenced areas.
Lebanon’s health ministry figures show more than 4300 people have been killed in the country since the conflict intensified on March 2 when Hezbollah launched rockets into Israel in retaliation for a strike that killed Iran’s supreme leader. Israeli authorities reported that 37 soldiers and four civilians were killed on both sides of the border during the fighting. The Jerusalem Post noted that the framework agreement seeks to conclusively end the conflict between the two states after multiple rounds of US-mediated talks that began in April.
A Washington Institute assessment published in July indicated that the agreement establishes a US-led third-party verification system designed to address shortcomings of previous ceasefire arrangements such as UN Security Council Resolution 1701. Coordination for the current pilot deployment has proceeded through the Military Coordination Group for Lebanon created under the trilateral mechanism. The Lebanese army statement emphasised that the deployment in Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh followed ongoing communications with that body.
