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Fire During Pilot Deployment
Israeli troops opened fire near Lebanese army units as they deployed into the pilot zone in southern Lebanon on Tuesday, with the Lebanese army saying its units began moving into Zawtar al-Gharbiya in the Nabatieh region.
“Israeli forces open fire near Lebanese soldiers deployed in southern Lebanon”
The Lebanese army warned that the incident would hinder further deployment steps in the pilot zones, while Israel disputed the characterization and said it fired warning shots into the air after Lebanese soldiers moved into an area it said fell outside the agreed boundaries.
The incident unfolded the same day Lebanese President Joseph Aoun arrived in Washington for a meeting with President Donald Trump, who helped broker the deal.
The US State Department announced Monday evening that Lebanese army units had begun assuming security responsibilities in three villages: Zawtar al-Gharbiya, Froun, and Srifa, and the Israeli military acknowledged it would "adjust its force posture in one of the pilot areas."
A separate episode also raised tensions when the Lebanese Red Cross reported that two of its paramedics were wounded and an ambulance severely damaged after a landmine detonated near a convoy entering an Israeli-occupied area to search for a missing person.
Competing Versions, Diplomatic Push
Lebanese and Israeli accounts diverged over what happened in Zawtar al-Gharbiyah, with the Lebanese army saying Israeli forces fired "near" its personnel during their deployment in an "experimental area".
The Israeli army said its forces fired warning shots into the air after Lebanese soldiers, accompanied by an engineering vehicle, crossed about 150 meters into what it describes as a security area near the neighboring eastern Zoutr and passed the barriers.
The BBC reported that the Lebanese army announced the start of its deployment in the experimental area in southern Lebanon following the Israeli withdrawal under a US-brokered agreement reached last June, and that the U.S. State Department announced the start of experimental area operations in Zoutr al-Gharbiyah, Fron, and Sirifa.
In Washington, Le Devoir said Trump told Aoun he intended to 'help Lebanon a lot' as the US-backed agreement with Israel entered its first phase, and it quoted Trump saying, 'We will help him. We will help him a lot.'
Le Devoir also reported that Aoun stressed the need for an 'Israeli total withdrawal' to advance the implementation of the framework agreement, while the Israeli army version framed its shots as warning shots after Lebanese soldiers crossed outside the pilot area.
What’s at Stake Next
The pilot deployment is tied to a US-mediated framework agreement signed last month and described as a phased Israeli withdrawal from occupied Lebanese territory, with the Lebanese army taking over security in the south while Hezbollah is to be disarmed.
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The BBC said the Israeli army would remain in the security zone—a strip of occupied Lebanese territory along the border and 10 kilometers deep—as long as necessary to defend the north, while the Lebanese army urged citizens not to go to Zoutr al-Gharbiyah until the security situation stabilizes.
In its account of the same day’s events, Türkiye Today said the June 26 framework agreement envisions gradual Israeli withdrawal from large swathes of southern Lebanon occupied during the recent war against Iran-backed Hezbollah, but it noted there is no established timetable for full Israeli withdrawal.
ARAB NEWS framed Zawtar Al-Gharbiyah as the first test of Israeli withdrawal and Lebanese army deployment in southern Lebanon, describing it as located south of the Litani River and among the pilot zones covered by the first phase of the framework formula signed on June 26.
The stakes are also humanitarian and operational: Türkiye Today reported that the Lebanese Red Cross said it had obtained the required permits before entering the zone and was working to secure safe passage for injured rescuers after the landmine blast.
