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Aoun heads to Washington
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and First Lady Nehmat Aoun arrived in Washington for an official visit at the invitation of US President Donald Trump, with the presidential plane landing at Joint Base Andrews at 3pm local time (19:00 GMT) on Saturday.
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Aoun was scheduled to meet US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday and hold talks with Trump at the White House on Tuesday, according to Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency (NNA).
The Times of Israel said Aoun left Beirut on Saturday for Washington after the latest round of Lebanon-Israel talks wrapped up in Italy, and that he was expected to discuss “the withdrawal of Israel from the Lebanese regions it occupies.”
The same report said Israel and Lebanon began US-sponsored negotiations in April aimed at reaching a peace deal and permanently ending the Israel-Hezbollah war, and that on June 26 they reached a framework agreement in Washington under which Israeli military withdrawal from southern Lebanon would be paired with Lebanese army deployment starting with two “pilot zones.”
Ceasefire, pilot zones, strikes
As Aoun traveled to Washington, US-led efforts to end fighting between Israel and Hezbollah entered a new phase, with Al Jazeera saying Aoun would meet Trump and senior officials to strengthen the ceasefire and secure Israel’s withdrawal from southern Lebanon.
Al Jazeera reported that US officials said the two sides had agreed on the next steps for creating “pilot zones” in southern Lebanon, where Israeli troops would begin withdrawing and the Lebanese army would take over security, while noting the framework agreement sets no deadline for Israeli forces to leave.
The Times of Israel said Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported fresh airstrikes against two towns in the Tyre and Nabatieh regions and a large detonation near Zawtar al-Sharqiyah on Saturday, and that the Lebanese military said a soldier was killed and an officer and another soldier were wounded in Mansouri.
It also said the Israeli army claimed the explosive device had been planted by Hezbollah and that after an examination it was determined the explosive device was “not an IDF device, but rather one that was apparently planted by the Hezbollah terror organization.”
What’s at stake next
The negotiations that brought Aoun to Washington are tied to how ceasefire implementation and Israeli withdrawal proceed, with Al Jazeera saying withdrawals are tied to Hezbollah and other armed groups disarming, a condition Hezbollah has rejected.
Al Jazeera also said Israeli forces have remained inside what they call a 10km (six-mile) “security zone” along the border and continued carrying out air strikes, while Lebanese state media reported new Israeli attacks on two towns on the edge of the zone in the Tyre and Nabatieh regions on Saturday.
Kurdistan24 framed the visit as focused on reinforcing the ceasefire in southern Lebanon and advancing efforts to secure Israel’s withdrawal from areas it continues to occupy, citing AFP reporting that the discussions would also review the broader political and security situation confronting Lebanon.
Kurdistan24 added that the presidency said Aoun’s agenda includes consultations on consolidating the ceasefire “particularly in southern Lebanon,” and that the trip coincides with broader international efforts to stabilize Lebanon’s border with Israel and prevent a wider regional crisis.
