Israeli forces will not immediately withdraw from Lebanon when the ceasefire agreement takes effect at 11pm ET on Tuesday, a senior US administration official said, but they are expected to do so. within 60 days, according to the agreed terms.
“They will not withdraw immediately, but rather during the 60-day period in which Lebanese military and security forces will begin to move south. This is a process that cannot happen overnight or in just a few days, and therefore there is this period to prevent vacuums from forming, where, as the Lebanese army moves and reaches the south, the forces Israelis will withdraw,” the official told reporters.
The official did not provide a clear answer about Israel’s right to respond militarily to ceasefire violations and whether the Israeli government could unilaterally choose to do so. He noted that both Israel and Lebanon “retain the right to self-defense in accordance with international law.”
Regarding the withdrawal of Hezbollah forces from southern Lebanon, the official said there is “an agreed map that is roughly north of the Litani River line, although it deviates a bit and goes further north of the Litani in certain areas.”
The Lebanese army will be “authorized and instructed” by the Lebanese government to take a position in the south of the country and ensure that Hezbollah moves north and that all of its heavy artillery is removed. The Lebanese army “will also patrol the area and ensure that if there is any remaining infrastructure or weaponry, it is removed and that no such infrastructure can be rebuilt again in that area,” the official said.
This content was originally published in USA: Israeli forces will not immediately leave Lebanon under ceasefire agreement on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
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