The US State Department will host a meeting between the Lebanese and Israeli ambassadors in Washington next week, as the round of talks scheduled to take place in Rome has been postponed until October, a US official announced. The official said the trilateral framework between Lebanon and Israel is the “only effective mechanism” for addressing outstanding issues.
Withdrawal, army deployment and monitoring mechanism issues
The Washington meeting keeps channels of communication open after the Rome round was postponed; it had been scheduled to last two days. The issues on the table include Israeli withdrawals from southern Lebanon, the completion of the Lebanese army’s deployment and the future of what are known as “model areas”, as well as reaching an acceptable mechanism for monitoring them.
Destruction of Ali al-Taher tunnels and escalation of threats
The diplomatic moves coincide with military developments in southern Lebanon, where Israel announced the destruction of a network of tunnels in the Ali al-Taher heights near Nabatieh. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his forces found missiles, mines, an anti-aircraft gun and computers in the area, claiming that Iran had sent and funded them for Hezbollah.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said the army had established a “fortified security zone” extending from the coast to the approaches to Mount Hermon.
Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir also threatened an “immediate and strong” response to any attacks targeting Israeli forces or towns, while withdrawal, army deployment and monitoring mechanism issues remain on the agenda for the next round of negotiations.
