Isreal Aim To Remain In Lebanon Past Withdrawal Deadline

The Israeli government is aiming to keep military positions in southern Lebanon after Sunday withdrawal deadline, set in a November ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah, the country’s ambassador to the US said on Thursday.

The Israeli military invaded southern Lebanon on October 1 – the culmination of a yearlong, low-level war with Hezbollah, which attacked Israeli-held territory on October 8, 2023, in solidarity with Hamas.

The Israeli government has told US President Donald Trump’s administration that it wants Israeli troops to remain in Lebanon for at least an additional 30 days, an Israeli official told CNN. The Israeli security cabinet met Thursday night to discuss the issue.

It is unclear whether the Trump administration has responded to the request or taken it to the Lebanese government. Former President Joe Biden’s envoy brokered the agreement between Israel and Hezbollah, the Lebanese militant group backed by Iran.

In a statement, a US Department of Defense official appeared to suggest that the timeline could be malleable.

Michael Herzog, Israel’s ambassador in Washington, told Israel’s Army Radio on Thursday that a 60-day deadline set out in a November ceasefire agreement “is not set in stone.”

“We are currently in discussions with the Trump administration in order to prolong the duration of time needed for the Lebanese army to deploy and fulfill its duties according to the agreement,” he said. “There is an understanding in the incoming administration about what our security needs are and what our position is, and I believe that we will reach an understanding in this issue as well.”

In a statement to CNN on Thursday, a US Department of Defense official didn’t explicitly say whether the withdrawal was on track.

“The cessation of hostilities commitments that went into effect Nov. 27, 2024, state that IDF withdrawal from the Southern Litani area should be accomplished in 60 days,” the official said. “That timeline was set to try to generate speed of action and progress. And progress has been made.”

“The Lebanese Armed Forces have shown that they have the commitment, will, and capability to execute the arrangement,” the official added.

According to the November agreement, both Israeli and Hezbollah forces must withdraw from southern Lebanon by January 26, the end of that 60-day period.

An Israeli official who described Israel’s request to the US said Israel has requested a 30-day extension and has said it would re-assess the viability of withdrawing from southern Lebanon at the end of that extension.

The official said all of the outposts Israel has asked to maintain are alongside the Israel-Lebanon border.

The Lebanese military and UN peacekeepers will be the only forces allowed in southern Lebanon. Hezbollah must pull its forces north of Lebanon’s Litani River – a frontier beyond which the militant group was not supposed to have advanced under a 2006 United Nations Security Council resolution.

CNN/Ejiofor Ezeifeoma