The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) began its first withdrawal from southern Lebanon, as part of the ceasefire agreement sealed at the end of November, the United States Central Command (CENTCOM) reported.
«This is an important first step in the implementation of a durable cessation of hostilities and lays the foundation for continued progress,” celebrated the head of CENTCOM, General Michael Kurilla, present during the withdrawal of the IDF and the replacement of the Lebanese Army in Khiam, in the Marjayun region, in the south of the country.
Kurilla made these statements after meeting with the commander of the Lebanese Armed Forces, Joseph Aoun, and American General Jasper Jeffers, who co-directs, together with the French delegate, the mechanism for supervising the cessation of hostilities between the IDF and the Shiite militia party Hezbollah.
The Lebanese Army has confirmed the deployment of its soldiers in “five locations around Khiam” together with the United Nations Interim Force for Lebanon (UNIFIL), in a publication on the X social network accompanied by images and videos.
This is the first phase of deployment “coinciding with the withdrawal of the Israeli enemy,” he noted, while in the next stage a study will be carried out to “remove unexploded ordnance” of the region. For this reason, the Lebanese Armed Forces have asked citizens “not to approach the area and to comply with the instructions of the military units until the deployment ends.”
For its part, the Israeli Army has confirmed on social networks that it has concluded “its mission” in Khiam, but has assured in the same message that “the IDF remains deployed in southern Lebanon and will operate against any threat it poses to the State.” of Israel and its citizens.
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