Lebanese Army: Israeli forces opened fire near our units during deployment in 'experimental zone'

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The Lebanese Army said Tuesday that Israeli forces opened fire "near" its troops during their deployment in the town of Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh, one of the "experimental zones" in southern Lebanon, under the "framework agreement" with Israel.

The army stated in a statement: "While the military units were carrying out the deployment operation in the town of Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh, the Israeli occupation forces opened fire near these units," stressing that "this attack would hinder the implementation of deployment steps in the experimental zones."

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Meanwhile, the Lebanese Army announced the beginning of its forces' deployment in an "experimental zone" in southern Lebanon, following the withdrawal of Israeli forces under an agreement brokered by the United States last June.

A statement from the army command said that military units entered the village of Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh in the Nabatieh district on Tuesday morning.

On Monday evening, the Israeli army confirmed the start of implementing the experimental zone plan, which would see Israeli forces withdraw from a small part of the territory they had seized during their conflict with Hezbollah, in addition to disarming Hezbollah.

This comes ahead of a meeting in Washington between US President Donald Trump and his Lebanese counterpart Joseph Aoun.

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It is expected that Aoun will urge Trump to pressure Israel to withdraw from the rest of southern Lebanon, and provide support to the Lebanese army to regain full control of areas held by Hezbollah.

For its part, the US State Department announced on Monday afternoon the start of "experimental zone operations" in Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh and two other Lebanese villages, Frun and Sirfa, in line with the tripartite framework agreement between Israel, Lebanon, and the United States.

The department explained that this "important step" was a direct result of last week's talks between Israeli and Lebanese representatives in Rome.

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Later on Monday, an Israeli military official confirmed that the Israeli army "will reposition its forces in one of the experimental zones" to enable the Lebanese army to carry out its mission, while "ensuring the safety of Israeli soldiers and preserving its right to self-defense and removing threats."

The official said: "The goal of the experimental operation and the agreement is to disarm Hezbollah and remove its illegal weapons."

The Israeli army also reiterated that it will remain in the "security zone" — a strip of occupied Lebanese territory running along the border and extending 10 kilometers (six miles) — "as long as necessary" to defend the north.

The Lebanese Army command announced on Tuesday that its units had begun deploying in the village of Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh "based on continuous contacts with the Military Coordination Group for Lebanon."

The statement also called on Lebanese citizens "not to go to the village until the security situation stabilizes, and to comply with the instructions of the deployed military units to preserve their safety."

The Lebanese Army reported that its forces are already carrying out missions in the neighboring villages of Frun and Sirfa, following the US announcement on Monday.

Sources in the Lebanese presidency to BBC: "Meeting between Aoun and Netanyahu is completely rejected."

An Israeli source also told Haaretz that there are no Israeli forces in those two villages.

Lebanon had become embroiled in the war between Israel, the United States, and Iran on March 2, when Hezbollah fired rockets at Israel in response to an airstrike that killed Iran's supreme leader, and Israel retaliated by bombing areas across Lebanon.

The Lebanese Health Ministry reported more than 4,300 people killed in Lebanon, including nearly 800 children, women, and medical workers. Meanwhile, Israeli authorities reported 37 Israeli soldiers and four civilians killed on both sides of the border during the conflict.

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