Israel must withdraw from Lebanon by January 26 deadline: President Aoun

As he met with the UN representative in the devastated region of Lebanon, the new president met with the UN secretary general who had demanded that Israel leave the country’s southern region before the January 26 deadline agreed in the previous year’s ceasefire.

President Joseph Aoun’s office said on Saturday after meeting with Antonio Guterres in Beirut that the continued Israeli violations of Lebanese sovereignty and the international community were “completely contrary to what was stated in the ceasefire agreement” and that they “remain in line with what was stated in the agreement.”

According to Guterres, he will “make every effort” to secure the forces’ “secure” withdrawal by the deadline of January 26 as stipulated by the November 27 agreement.

Under Aoun’s leadership, Guterres predicted a “more hopeful future” for Lebanon, where it could develop stability and become a regional powerhouse.

A two-year power vacuum that had been exacerbated by Israeli attacks and a turbulent economy was resolved in January with the election of Aoun as the leader of Lebanon.

The former army chief, who is also a member of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), has also emphasized his support for the organization that is responsible for securing the southern region of Lebanon in accordance with Resolution 1701, which put an end to the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006.

According to Zeina Khodr, a journalist from Beirut, Guterres’ message to the new president and new prime minister Nawaf Salam was that he had endorsed them.

The international community will support them and support them in their recovery efforts, Guterres asserts. The last few years in Lebanon have been difficult. The economy has all but collapsed, the state is nearly bankrupt, there’s a financial crisis and the currency has lost much of its value”.

As part of the ceasefire, Hezbollah is supposed to retreat beyond the Litani River, which lies some 30 kilometres (20 miles) from the border with Israel, and dismantle any remaining military infrastructure.

UN peacekeepers have found more than 100 weapons caches belonging “to Hezbollah or other armed groups” in southern Lebanon, Guterres said on Friday, calling on Israel to stop its “occupation” in the area.

As Israeli military forces gradually withdraw, the Lebanese army has been stationed in additional areas of the south along with UN peacekeepers.

French President Emmanuel Macron, who was on a visit to Beirut on Friday, said the total Israeli withdrawal from the area must be “accelerated” and the Lebanese army strengthened.

The United States announced on Saturday that it would donate more than $117 million to Lebanon in response to Guterres’ pledge to increase international aid to the country during his trip.

According to a statement from the US Department of State, the funds will be provided as part of “new, expanded security assistance” for both the Lebanese army and security forces in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 1701.

The Lebanese army, the UN and France have accused Israel of repeated “violations” of the ceasefire, as it has launched many attacks in its stated attempts to “enforce” the agreement.

Naim Qassem, the head of Hezbollah, claimed in a televised speech on Saturday that Israel’s military had “hundreds” of times violated the agreement.