‘Pilot areas’ in southern Lebanon still being defined, US envoy says

Progress has been made in defining co-called “pilot areas” in southern Lebanon where the Lebanese army is meant to deploy as part of a June framework agreement calling for Israel’s gradual withdrawal, US Ambassador to Lebanon Michael Issa said Wednesday.

Issa made the remarks after meeting Sheikh Abdul Latif Derian, Lebanon’s grand mufti, in Beirut, where they discussed the country’s future and ongoing talks between Lebanon and Israel, according to the Lebanese National News Agency.

Asked about continued Israeli attacks on southern Lebanon, Issa acknowledged that they “have not stopped” and were happening mainly “outside the designated pilot areas.”

He added that Washington had yet to reach an agreement with Israel to halt the attacks.

Reiterating his support for the Israeli position, Issa linked the continued attacks to what he described as Hezbollah’s “failure to honor the ceasefire.”

Defending Israel's continued aggression, he added: “Hezbollah has never said it is prepared to hand over its weapons. So how can you ask Israel to withdraw from Lebanon?”

Talks with Hezbollah ‘possible’

Asked whether Washington could negotiate with Hezbollah, Issa said, “We have never said we will negotiate with it,” but added that talks were “possible if the group is willing or has something to offer.”

He also dismissed what he described as “unproductive contacts,” saying negotiations must be more than merely “exchanging visits and drinking coffee.”

According to Issa, Lebanon-Israel negotiations remain underway in Rome.

He described the talks as “technical negotiations” that do not require fixed dates, adding that sovereignty-related issues were being handled separately and were scheduled in advance to avoid overlap.

‘Pilot areas’

So-called “pilot areas” are areas of southern Lebanon where initial arrangements are being made in line with the June 26 framework agreement, which calls for a gradual Israeli withdrawal and the deployment of the Lebanese army into vacated areas.

“Everything is first determined on paper, and it takes a long time to implement on the ground,” Issa said, adding that defining a pilot area requires field teams to identify every feature forming its boundaries.

Despite the agreement, Israel has continued staging relentless attacks in several parts of southern Lebanon, which Beirut says are hindering the army’s planned deployments.

Since March 2, wide-ranging Israeli attacks have killed 4,348 people and injured more than 12,000 others, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.

Israeli forces remain present in several parts of southern Lebanon, some of which they have occupied for decades.

Others were occupied during a previous round of fighting in 2023 and 2024, when Israeli forces advanced more than 10 kilometers into sovereign Lebanese territory.