Maj. Gen. Jasper Jeffers of the U.S. Special Operations Command Centeral (SOCCENT) arrived in Beirut on Wednesday to oversee the implementation and monitoring of the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) confirmed on Friday.
Lebanese Armed Forces Commander Gen. Joseph Aoun received Jeffers at his office in Yarzeh, according to Lebanese media.
Jeffers will serve as a co-chair of the implementation and monitoring mechanism alongside senior U.S. presidential envoy Amos Hochstein until a permanent civilian official is named, according to a CENTCOM statement.
The mechanism, which will be chaired by the United States, will consist of the Lebanese and Israeli militaries, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and France, the statement continued.
IDF warns Lebanese not to return to the south
On Saturday, Israel Defense Forces Arabic-language spokesman Col. Avichay Adraee issued an “urgent statement” to Lebanese citizens warning them not to return to villages in Southern Lebanon “until further notice.”
Naming dozens of villages in the statement, Adraee warned that “anyone who moves south of this line puts himself in danger.”
Under the terms of the ceasefire, which went into effect on Nov. 27, Israeli forces are to gradually withdraw from Lebanon over a period of 60 days, while the Lebanese Armed Forces enter those areas vacated by the IDF.
Hezbollah has already violated the ceasefire on a number of occasions, according to the Israeli military.
In a series of posts on X, the IDF spokesperson relayed a number of actions taken by the Israeli military in Southern Lebanon over the weekend to enforce the truce.
• The Israeli Air Force struck a vehicle loaded with “RPGs, ammunition crates and other military equipment.”
• A member of the IDF Paratroopers Brigade opened fire on armed Hezbollah terrorists.
• The IAF bombed rocket launchers in the Sidon area.
• The air force struck a “military tool” in an area associated with Hezbollah missile production.
• Israeli forces found and confiscated Hezbollah weapons stashed in a mosque.
The IDF spokesperson added that the Israeli military had fired at suspicious individuals in Southern Lebanon.
“The IDF remains in Southern Lebanon and will actively enforce violations of the ceasefire agreement,” the IDF stated.
On Friday, Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem claimed the group was on the verge of “divine victory” over Israel, surpassing that claimed by the terrorist organization after the 2006 Second Lebanon War.
In a television address to the Lebanese people, he reiterated his group’s commitment to the “Palestinian cause,” saying, “The war began with the goal of destroying Hezbollah, returning civilians to the north, and building a new Middle East. Israel expected to achieve its objectives quickly after striking our leadership and capabilities. Hezbollah managed to stand firm on the frontlines and began hitting Israel’s domestic front.”
Qassem is the successor of Hassan Nasrallah, who was eliminated by Israel in southern Beirut, along with other top Hezbollah leaders and commanders, on Sep. 27.
The Israel-Lebanon ceasefire went into effect at 4 a.m. local time on Wednesday, halting nearly 14 months of hostilities.
Israel’s Security Cabinet approved the U.S.-proposed agreement by a vote of 10-1, with only Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir opposing the move.
Hezbollah launched some 16,000 rockets, missiles and drones at Israel since joining the war in support of Hamas on Oct. 8, 2023, a day after the Gaza-based terror organization’s massacre in southern Israel.
Nearly 70,000 residents of northern Israel have been internally displaced due to the cross-border attacks from Lebanon. Forty five Israeli civilians and 79 IDF soldiers were killed, according to the most recent data from the Alma Research and Education Center, which monitors the northern fronts.