Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh, Lebanon. Lebanese army troops began deploying in the southern town of Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh on Tuesday after Israeli forces withdrew, marking the first handover under a U.S.-brokered plan.
The deployment is intended to test a programme involving Lebanese military control, the confiscation of Hezbollah weapons and phased Israeli troop withdrawals from parts of southern Lebanon.
Pilot zone programme
The Israeli military said on Monday that the plan, known as the pilot zone programme, had begun. It had no immediate comment on Tuesday.
An Israeli military official said the pilot would test whether the Lebanese Armed Forces could act as the sole official authority authorised to bear arms in three pilot villages.
Israeli officials have expressed scepticism over Lebanon’s ability to disarm the Iran-aligned Hezbollah group, while viewing the agreement reached last month as a step towards long-term peace with Lebanon.
Territory and displacement
Lebanon hopes the plan will help it restore control over a strip of territory about 10 kilometres deep into the country that remains occupied by Israeli troops.
Dozens of villages in the area have been razed, while public infrastructure, including hospitals, power stations and water pumps, has been destroyed. Tens of thousands of residents have been unable to return.
Security warning
The Lebanese army said its units had begun deploying in Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh, in the Nabatieh region.
It urged residents not to enter the town until the security situation stabilises and to follow instructions from deployed military units.
The latest round of fighting between Hezbollah and Israel began in early March, two days after the United States and Israel launched strikes against Iran. Hezbollah said it was acting in support of Tehran.
