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United Nations peacekeepers and interim Prime Minister Najib Mikati have urged the Israeli military to expedite its withdrawal from Lebanon, following nearly a month of a delicate ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.
UNIFIL, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, emphasized the need for the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) to accelerate their withdrawal and for the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) to take up positions in southern Lebanon. The force called on all parties to adhere to UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and avoid any actions that could disrupt the current fragile peace.
Mikati appealed to the United States and France to pressure Israel into completing its withdrawal more swiftly. He stressed that the international committee, comprising the US, France, Lebanon, Israel, and UNIFIL, must ensure that all ceasefire violations are addressed promptly.
As part of the ceasefire agreement, the Lebanese army and peacekeepers are to deploy in southern Lebanon as the Israeli forces withdraw over a 60-day period. Mikati, during a visit to the southern town of Khiam, urged for expedited pressure on Israel to halt all ceasefire violations, accusing Israel of stalling.
The Lebanese army reported its deployment around Khiam, five kilometers from the border, in coordination with UNIFIL following the Israeli troop withdrawal. However, the Lebanese National News Agency (NNA) noted continued Israeli activities in southern Lebanon, including raising the Israeli flag on a hill between Bayada and Naqoura and dynamiting homes in border villages.
The Israeli military, on the other hand, stated it was continuing defensive operations in the south in line with the agreement and had confiscated various weapons and military equipment from a warehouse.
The ceasefire, effective since November 27, followed more than a year of cross-border hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, which escalated into full-scale war and the deployment of Israeli troops into southern Lebanon.
Mikati expressed his desire to resolve any disputes regarding the Blue Line, the UN-demarcated boundary between Lebanon and Israel, to eliminate any justification for Israeli occupation. He also mentioned efforts to establish a trust fund for reconstruction, with support from the World Bank, the European Union, Arab nations, and international partners. The World Bank estimated in October that the conflict had caused physical damage in Lebanon amounting to at least $3.4 billion.
