Lebanon’s army issued a statement Sunday accusing “Israeli occupation forces” of delaying completion of the pilot withdrawal that began last week, under which Israeli troops committed to pull out of three villages to allow Lebanese army forces to enter—in coordination with and under supervision of American forces.
1+The statement said “Israeli occupation forces continue their attacks and violations of existing understandings and international laws, through systematic destruction and bulldozing of homes, shelling and machine gun sweeps in several southern areas.” It added that “the continuation of these attacks delays completion of the army’s deployment according to existing understandings, prevents residents from returning to their villages and towns, and blocks the establishment of stability in the south.”
The Lebanese army statement also referenced the incident in which Israeli forces fired near Lebanese troops. An IDF spokesperson responded to that incident, claiming Israeli forces fired warning shots into the air only—after identifying a Lebanese force crossing into the security zone to a depth of about 150 meters, contrary to agreements between the sides.
1+As we reported, Israeli officials cast doubt on the pilot’s success from the start. Among the skeptics: former Unit 8200 commander Hanan Gefen, who explained the positive and negative aspects of the “safe zone” pilot and shared that he is “very, very skeptical” about its chances of success.