The Trump administration does not support a permanent Israeli military presence inside Lebanon, a State Department official told Al Arabiya English on Monday, hours after Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz suggested that Israeli forces would remain in a so-called security zone in Lebanese territory.
– “The United States expects all parties to act in a manner consistent with the Framework they agreed to, and Israel clearly stated that it has no territorial ambitions in Lebanon,” the official said.
– The official was referring to the US-brokered ceasefire framework between Lebanon and Israel, which was agreed earlier this summer and calls for the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Lebanon and the disarmament of Iran-backed Hezbollah.
– Speaking from southern Lebanon on Monday morning, Katz said Israeli forces were “here to stay.”
– He added: “As the prime minister and I have made unequivocally clear, we are not withdrawing from this security zone.” Katz went on to tout the total destruction of homes and villages in southern Lebanon, which he claimed were Hezbollah infrastructure.
– “A permanent military presence in South Lebanon is not consistent with the commitments made in the Framework, or the long-term peace and security of both states,” the State Department official said, adding that Washington fully supports Lebanon’s territorial integrity and sovereignty.
– US officials have previously used the term “redeployment” when asked whether Israeli forces could remain in Lebanese territory under certain conditions.
– Under the framework, a conditions-based process for the “progressive redeployment” of Israeli forces is linked to verified disarmament of Hezbollah and the dismantling of its military infrastructure.
– Israel has repeatedly accused the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) of failing to do enough to disarm Hezbollah, while Beirut has argued that Israeli military operations and its continued presence in Lebanese territory complicate the process.
– In recent weeks, the first pilot zones have been established in southern Lebanon, where the LAF is to assume control of areas previously occupied by either Israeli forces or Hezbollah.
– The Lebanese Armed Forces are implementing the first pilot zones, and the United States will continue to support full implementation of that process,” the State Department official said.
– The comments come as Washington seeks to advance the broader framework through direct talks between Lebanon and Israel. US officials have described recent technical discussions as constructive, while acknowledging significant political and security obstacles to implementation.
– Washington has sought to link Israeli redeployment with measurable progress by the LAF in establishing state authority and clearing Hezbollah infrastructure, while also supporting Lebanon’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
– The US position puts the administration at odds with any suggestion that Israel could maintain an open-ended military presence in southern Lebanon, even as Washington continues to press for the security conditions it says are necessary for an Israeli withdrawal.