Israel seen as giving Lebanon a chance after arms monopoly announcement
Israel on Thursday called off a meeting for its security cabinet that was supposed to discuss a possible Israeli operation against Hezbollah, in a “notable development,” a media report said.
“This is a meaningful signal that indicates an Israeli inclination to show patience in dealing with Lebanon and abide by the directions of President Donald Trump,” who had asked Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu in their Florida meeting to “wait for what the Lebanese government will do” before waging any new operation in Lebanon, informed sources told the PSP’s al-Anbaa news portal.
Israel said Thursday that Lebanon's efforts to disarm Hezbollah were encouraging but "far from sufficient," after the Lebanese Army announced it had completed the first phase of disarming armed groups in the country.
"The ceasefire agreement brokered by the United States between Israel and Lebanon states clearly, Hezbollah must be fully disarmed," Netanyahu’s office said in a statement.
"Efforts made toward this end by the Lebanese government and the Lebanese armed forces are an encouraging beginning, but they are far from sufficient, as evidenced by Hezbollah's efforts to rearm and rebuild its terror infrastructure with Iranian support," it added.
Lebanese Information Minister Paul Morcos said after a Cabinet meeting that the army will start working on a plan for disarmament north of the Litani river that will be discussed by the government in February. He added that the army will also continue the process of weapons “containment” in other parts of Lebanon, meaning that they will not be allowed to be used or moved.
The Lebanese military has been clearing tunnels, rocket-launching positions, and other structures since its disarmament proposal was approved by the government and went into effect in September.
The government had set a deadline of the end of 2025 to clear the area south of the Litani River of non-state weapons.
“The army confirms that its plan to restrict weapons has entered an advanced stage, after achieving the goals of the first phase effectively and tangibly on the ground,” the military statement read. “Work in the sector is ongoing until the unexploded ordnance and tunnels are cleared ... with the aim of preventing armed groups from irreversibly rebuilding their capabilities.”
Officials have said the next stage of the disarmament plan is in segments of southern Lebanon between the Litani and the Awali rivers, which include Lebanon’s port city of Sidon, but they have not set a timeline for that phase.
Israel continues to strike Lebanon near daily and occupies five strategic hilltop points along the border, the only areas south of the Litani where the military said it has yet to control.
Regular meetings have taken place between the Lebanese and the Israelis alongside the United States, France, and the U.N. peacekeeping forces in southern Lebanon, known as UNIFIL, to monitor developments after the ceasefire.
Lebanon’s cash-strapped military has since been gradually dispersing across wide areas of southern Lebanon between the Litani and the U.N.-demarcated “Blue Line” that separates the tiny country from Israel. The military has also been slowly confiscating weapons from armed Palestinian factions in refugee camps.
Israel accuses Hezbollah of trying to rebuild its battered military capacity and has said that the Lebanese military’s efforts are not sufficient, raising fears of a new escalation. Lebanon, meanwhile, said Israel's strikes and control of the hilltops were an obstacle to the efforts.
Lebanon also hopes that disarming Hezbollah and other non-state groups will help to bring in money needed for reconstruction after the 2024 war.
Hezbollah says it has been cooperative with the army in the south but will not discuss disarming elsewhere before Israel stops its strikes and withdraws from Lebanese territory.
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