Israel And Lebanon Negotiate Hezbollah-Free Zone Before Israeli Pullback From Southern Villages

Israel and Lebanon are negotiating a proposed “Hezbollah-free zone” ahead of an Israeli pullback from two villages in southern Lebanon, with Israeli officers and Lebanese military officers holding US-mediated talks to define the boundaries, Israel’s public broadcaster said on Sunday.

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Al-Manar TV Lebanon

The US-brokered security framework advanced by Beirut and Tel Aviv on June 26 envisions a phased Israeli withdrawal in exchange for Lebanese Army deployment and the disarmament of armed groups, while Hezbollah and several Lebanese political factions rejected the proposal.

L'Orient Today

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is reviewing the proposal as Israeli officials seek assurances from the Lebanese Army and the US Central Command that Lebanese forces are ready to deploy in the designated pilot zones.

The death toll from the war between March 2 and July 5 is put by Lebanon’s Health Ministry at 4,304 dead and 12,203 wounded, including women and children.

In parallel, Lebanese media reported on Sunday that Israeli warplanes struck Nabatieh Al-Fawqa, the Ali Al-Taher heights, and the Al-Hariq neighborhood between Kfartebnit and Nabatieh Al-Fawqa, while artillery shelling targeted Deir Seryan and the outskirts of Qantara in Marjayoun district.

In an interview on Fox News on Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed that Christians in Lebanon had asked Israel to “annex” their villages, saying “we…take care of our friends, especially the Christians in the Middle East”.

Netanyahu told host Jacqui Heinrich on “The Sunday Briefing” that “Christian villages in Lebanon some of them have actually asked to be annexed to Israel because we protect them against Hezbollah fanatics who want to kill them”.

Middle East Eye

Middle East Eye said Netanyahu’s remarks sit uneasily beside Israel’s own record in Lebanon, where its forces have destroyed churches, damaged Christian religious sites and filmed soldiers desecrating Christian symbols.

The same article notes that Netanyahu made the comments two weeks after his far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said "all of Lebanon must burn" in a social media post following the deaths of four Israeli soldiers in occupied southern Lebanon.

Lebanon’s Health Ministry says Israeli attacks have killed at least 4,304 people and wounded 12,203 others since Israel began its war on the country on 2 March.

Israeli Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir warned Hezbollah of a 'rapid attack' during a tour of inspection in the Shaqif Castle area in southern Lebanon, according to a statement from the Israeli army carried by Al Jazeera net.

“Netanyahu claims Israel protects Christians after Israeli attacks hit churches in Lebanon Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed in an interview with Fox News on Sunday that Christians in Lebanon had asked Israel to “annex” their villages, many of which Israeli forces have damaged or destroyed”

Middle East Eye

Al Jazeera net says Zamir described the Shaqif area as “a strategic site that controls a wide surrounding area,” adding that it contains what he described as Hezbollah’s military infrastructure.

The Israeli army continued violations of the ceasefire agreement with Lebanon, carrying out an air strike on the town of Nabatieh al-Fouqa, a bombing in the town of al-Tiri, and artillery shelling toward the town of al-Qantara, while drones flew over southern Lebanon.

Lebanese Health Ministry reporting cited by Al Jazeera net put the total death toll from Israeli aggression against the country since March 2 at 4,304, and said wounded rose to 12,203 after recording one injury in the last 24 hours.

In parallel, Shafaq News reported that a reported security annex would allow Israeli forces to retain operational freedom in the south without a timetable for a full withdrawal, while Israel maintains that any pullback depends on Hezbollah’s disarmament.