Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar reports that during a cabinet meeting at the Baabda Palace, an aide informed the president of a report that Israel had withdrawn from part of the buffer zone as a 'goodwill gesture.' The president reportedly shared the news with ministers, only for a denial to emerge about ten minutes later, according to a single-source report.
The Lebanese daily Al-Akhbar — a newspaper with close ties to Hezbollah — reported the episode on Friday morning, adding a human dimension to the ongoing public confusion over Israel's positions in southern Lebanon. According to the report, President Joseph Aoun was informed mid-meeting that Israel had pulled back from part of the buffer zone in a 'goodwill gesture.' He shared the news with his cabinet, but within minutes a denial was published, and the president was left disappointed.
The incident echoes weeks of contradictory reporting tracked by The Zioneer. On June 25, U.S. State Department sources claimed a 'goodwill' pullback, only to be contradicted by the IDF and Lebanese military sources who said no movement had occurred on the ground. The episode underscores the fragile and unverified nature of information circulating through diplomatic channels regarding the implementation of the November 2024 ceasefire understandings. The report is based on a single source — Al-Akhbar's own account — and has not been independently corroborated.
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Source and signal
A single-sourced dispatch is never rated Confirmed or Strong. Its Signal strengthens only when a second, independent source corroborates it.
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