After weeks of intense fighting, Israel and Lebanon agreed on Wednesday to renew their fragile ceasefire and introduce a number of “pilot” security zones inside Lebanon from where Hezbollah militants would be banned, the Associated Press reported.
In a joint statement released after a fourth round of US-mediated talks at the State Department, the two sides said the ceasefire “is contingent on a complete cessation of Hezbollah fire and the evacuation of all Hezbollah operatives” from areas south of the Litani River.
To secure the region, both nations also agreed to “swiftly advance the creation of pilot zones in which the Lebanese Armed Forces will take exclusive control of the territory to the exclusion of all non-state actors,” Al Jazeera reported.
“These steps will enable progress towards a comprehensive peace and security agreement,” the statement read.
“All countries reaffirmed that the future of the relationship between Israel and Lebanon must be decided by the two sovereign governments. They rejected any attempt, by any state or non-state actor, to hold Lebanon’s future hostage,” it added.
Hezbollah has not been a part of the Israel-Lebanon talks being held since the beginning of last month.
“All parties condemned Iran’s attacks on countries in the region, and ongoing activities that undermine stability throughout the Middle East, whether through support for proxies and all other acts of aggression,” the statement said.
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Both countries also agreed to another round of talks in the weeks around June 22, as they eye “reaching a comprehensive agreement.”
