Israel preventing foreign support for Lebanese army, deputy PM says

Israel is preventing several countries from providing support to the Lebanese army as the latter deploys in parts of southern Lebanon in line with a US-backed framework agreement signed in June between Lebanon and Israel, Deputy Prime Minister Tarek Mitri said Friday.

“Several countries have expressed their readiness to help the Lebanese army as it enters the pilot areas in the south, but Israel is objecting to this,” Mitri said, according to the Lebanese National News Agency.

“Pilot areas” refer to parts of southern Lebanon where security arrangements are being made in line with the framework agreement, including the withdrawal of Israeli forces to make way for the deployment of Lebanese troops.

Mitri also decried what he described as “clear Israeli intransigence” regarding the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).

According to Mitri, Beirut wants an international body to remain in southern Lebanon to monitor developments there.

“Israel isn’t prepared to show good faith regarding negotiations and the framework agreement,” he said.

UNIFIL’s mandate in southern Lebanon is due to expire at the end of this year, with its full withdrawal expected to be completed in 2027.

Discussions remain underway over the future of the peacekeeping force’s mission in the country.

UNIFIL has been present in southern Lebanon since 1978 in line with UN Security Council resolutions. Its mandate includes monitoring the security situation and ensuring stability in the area.

Regarding Beirut’s efforts to strengthen the authority of state institutions, Mitri said the government’s decision to consolidate the role of the state “is not one from which it will back down.”

He also said Beirut does not want to enforce its decisions by force in a way that threatens national unity.

His remarks come as Lebanon and Israel seek to implement the June framework agreement, which calls for a phased Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory and the deployment of the Lebanese army into vacated areas.

It also calls for the disarmament of armed groups, in reference to Hezbollah.

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.