Rome, Italy. Lebanon and Israel are scheduled to hold their next round of U.S.-brokered talks on August 4, a Lebanese official told Reuters. The talks come as the countries begin implementing a plan for Israeli troop withdrawals and Lebanese army deployments in southern Lebanon.
Framework agreement
The longtime foes have held more than three months of face-to-face talks aimed at permanently ending hostilities after a new war erupted on March 2 between Israel and the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, amid the wider regional conflict.
The ambassador-level direct meetings are unusual for countries that remain formally at war and have no normal diplomatic relations after decades of invasion, military occupation and cross-border conflict.
Five meetings hosted by the United States produced a framework agreement late last month providing for Hezbollah’s disarmament, the phased withdrawal of Israeli troops from southern Lebanon and the deployment of Lebanese forces.
Pilot zones
The talks have moved to the Italian capital to allow delegations to discuss technical details and guidelines for pilot zones, the geographical areas where the phased process would be implemented.
The first Israeli withdrawal under the pilot zone programme took place this week. Israeli forces withdrew from the southern Lebanese town of Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh, where the Lebanese army began deploying troops.
The army asked residents to delay their return until the town is cleared of unexploded ordnance.
Lebanon seeks full withdrawal
Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam visited Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh on Wednesday and planted a Lebanese flag, saying the state would work to reopen roads, clear rubble and restore public services so residents could return.
Salam described the Israeli withdrawal as a significant first step but said Lebanon wanted a full Israeli withdrawal from all Lebanese territory.