US says "pilot zone" for Israeli withdrawal in Lebanon to launch within days

The first "pilot zone" aimed at facilitating a partial Israeli military withdrawal from southern Lebanon will be launched "in a matter of days," a U.S. official said, marking the next phase of a U.S.-mediated framework between Israel and Lebanon.

The initiative is intended to gradually transfer control of Lebanese territory currently held by Israeli forces back to the Lebanese government, Caliber.Az reports per U.S. media.

"Further pilot zones are being mapped out and planned," the U.S. official said. "CENTCOM is coordinating with both countries to move forward."

The official added that Washington "will soon begin outreach to international partners to help the Lebanese Government effectively restore sovereignty in these zones and across their country more broadly."

The announcement comes ahead of planned talks in Rome next week, which the official described as "a closed discussion that will enable the governments to hand off to technical teams, which will work on all issues outlined in the Framework."

The discussions will build on a 14-point framework reached during the latest round of U.S.-mediated negotiations between Israeli and Lebanese officials in Washington in late June.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun has linked Beirut's continued participation in the negotiations to the start of an Israeli military withdrawal from occupied areas of southern Lebanon, according to a diplomatic source familiar with the matter.

Israel has signalled resistance to a broader pullback. Defence Minister Israel Katz rejected the idea of a comprehensive withdrawal, saying: "We did not ask permission from anyone to enter Lebanon, and we do not need permission to remain in Lebanon."

By Aghakazim Guliyev