Israeli soldiers operating in Southern Lebanon continue to seize large amounts of weapons, the Israeli Defense Forces announced on Wednesday, four days before the army is supposed to complete its gradual withdrawal from the region.
Troops of the 810th “Mountain” Brigade deployed on the Lebanese side of Mount Dov have collected “numerous weapons, anti-tank guided missiles, rocket launchers, machine guns, sights and missiles,” the IDF said.
The military “continues to deepen its achievements, to remove any threat to the State of Israel and the residents of the north, as well as to prevent any attempt by Hezbollah to re-establish itself and strengthen its positions in the Mount Dov area, all in accordance with the truce understandings [with Beirut],” the statement concluded.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz warned earlier this month that the Nov. 26 ceasefire with Beirut would be void if Hezbollah refuses to withdraw from Southern Lebanon. Under the terms of the accord, Israel is to gradually redeploy from Lebanon before Jan. 26 as the Lebanese Armed Forces and the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon take responsibility for ensuring that Hezbollah remains disarmed south of the Litani River.
However, concerns have been growing in Jerusalem about whether the LAF can fulfill its obligation to clamp down on Hezbollah’s presence in the south. The IDF remains engaged in frequent operations in the border area.
A Monday meeting of the U.S.-led truce enforcement and monitoring mechanism, which is chaired by U.S. Maj. Gen. Jasper Jeffers, did not give any indication that the IDF intends to withdraw as planned on Sunday, according to Lebanon’s Hezbollah-affiliated Al Akhbar daily.
The newspaper cited Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati as saying during a televised interview that Jeffers had informed the government in Beirut that the IDF redeployment could be delayed by “several days.”
A source told Al Akhbar that the Israeli military has complained to the ceasefire committee that LAF forces have “refused to seize resistance [i.e., Hezbollah] assets from depots and homes, or to confiscate arms.” However, the Lebanese daily reported, residents of Southern Lebanon intend to return to the area next week in accordance with the truce.
Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid (Yesh Atid) told JNS on Monday that Hezbollah must withdraw north of the Litani River, located some 18 miles north of the border, for the ceasefire to become permanent.
“The first stage of it was just in order to make sure that the forces are organized in the right direction, but now, [we are] going to negotiate the final stage of this agreement,” he said, adding that the terrorist group was supposed to withdraw north of the Litani “in the next few days.”
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi has ordered the military to prepare plans for possible continued fighting in Lebanon, according to a statement released by the military’s Spokesperson’s Unit on Monday afternoon.
