Tehran, IRNA – The Lebanese army has announced its readiness to completely deploy in south of the country, accusing Israel of “procrastination” in withdrawing from the area under a ceasefire agreement.
The Lebanese army made the announcement on Saturday, a day before a 60-day deadline expires for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon as part of the ceasefire that took effect on November 27 and ended fighting between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah Resistance Movement.
Also within that 60-day period, Hezbollah weapons and fighters must be removed from areas south of the Litani River, where the Lebanese military deploys.
Lebanon’s army said in a statement on Saturday that it had continued to implement the plan, but delays have happened at a number of stages due to what it called procrastination in Israeli withdrawal.
The army also said it was ready to complete its deployment “as soon as the Israeli enemy withdraws.” In the meantime, the army urged the Lebanese people to be cautious in returning to their homes in the south due to the presence of mines and unexploded ordnance left behind by the Israeli forces.
On Friday, the office of Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israeli forces would remain in south Lebanon beyond the 60-day deadline, claiming that the terms of the ceasefire deal have not been fully implemented.
Israel has not said how long it would remain, and ordered displaced Lebanese not to return to their homes in the south until further notice.
Hezbollah warning
Ali Fayyad, a Lebanese lawmaker from Hezbollah, on Saturday warned against a dangerous development as a result of Israel’s refusal to complete its withdrawal on time.
Fayyad, a member of The Loyalty to the Resistance Bloc, which is the political wing of Hezbollah in the Lebanese parliament, rejected Israel’s claim that the terms of the ceasefire deal had not been completed.
He said that what the regime is doing in southern Lebanon has nothing to do with destroying Hezbollah’s weapons, rather it is destroying the residential, social and economic structures in Lebanon’s border areas.
The Hezbollah lawmaker also said that the Israeli regime is taking all those measures with the approval of the US, which he said in another indication of Washington-Tel Aviv partnership in all human and material losses imposed on Lebanon.
Israel’s failure to withdraw on time marks a dangerous development, Fayyad said, calling on the Lebanese government to reassess the position and find the most effective ways to get Israel to withdraw. He also called on the Beirut government to reassure the Lebanese, especially the southern community that is “experiencing a state of extreme anger and turmoil,” according to Reuters.
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