Israel and Lebanon signed an agreement Friday evening for the IDF to begin a partial withdrawal from Lebanon, according to Israeli media. The deal, described as 'the beginning of the beginning,' establishes two pilot zones as an initial model for a gradual Israeli pullout.
Friday evening, Israel and Lebanon signed an agreement for the IDF to begin a partial withdrawal from Lebanese territory, according to Israeli media reports. The deal was described by one report as 'the beginning of the beginning,' suggesting it represents an initial, limited step rather than a comprehensive withdrawal. The signing took place in Washington, attended by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who declared the framework 'just the beginning' and noted 'there is still a long way to go.'
This development follows a series of contradictory signals about the IDF's long-term presence in Lebanon. Earlier Friday, a senior Israeli official detailed a tripartite framework with the US and Lebanon that would bar Hezbollah and Iran from any role in Lebanon, establish an Israeli security zone, and create two pilot areas for Hezbollah disarmament — one south of the Litani River, one north of it. Hezbollah issued its first response earlier Friday, calling on the Lebanese government to reverse course and reject the agreement. The thread tracked the progression from a Lebanese source reporting a 20:00 signing time (Fri 19:34), through Israeli official confirmation, to the official signing (Fri 19:34), and finally the Al Jazeera report specifying two pilot zones.
The partial withdrawal deal marks a significant departure from repeated Israeli public statements insisting on no withdrawal from captured Lebanese territory. As The Zioneer reported on Thu Jun 25, 23:05 Jerusalem, a Channel 12 report indicated Israel was moving toward a partial withdrawal despite those denials. The mechanism for implementation, including timelines and the exact boundaries of the pilot zones, has not yet been detailed in the available reports.
What remains open: The exact boundaries of the pilot zones, the timeline for withdrawal, and how Hezbollah's opposition will affect implementation have not been specified. The agreement conditions withdrawal on Hezbollah's disarmament, a process with no clear mechanism or timeline.
15 developments
- DevelopingIsrael-Lebanon framework text implies gradual IDF withdrawal only after Hezbollah disarmament
- StrongIsrael reportedly heading toward partial withdrawal from Lebanon, contradicting public statements
- DevelopingReport: Full Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon agreed upon
- StrongUS-Iran MOU signed; analyst says Trump pushing partial Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon
Source and signal
- Internal intake