The Lebanese army said Saturday it was ready to deploy its forces in the country's south, accusing Israel of "procrastination" in its withdrawal under a ceasefire, a day before the pullout deadline.
Under the terms of the Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire that came into effect on November 27, the Lebanese army is to deploy alongside United Nations peacekeepers in the south as the Israeli army withdraws over a 60-day period that ends Sunday.
Hezbollah is to pull back its forces north of the Litani River -- about 30 kilometres (20 miles) from the Israeli border -- and dismantle any remaining military infrastructure in the south.
"There has been a delay at a number of stages as a result of the procrastination in the withdrawal from the Israeli enemy's side," the army said in a statement.
It said it was "ready to continue its deployment as soon as the Israeli enemy withdraws".
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said on Friday that the military's withdrawal would continue beyond the Sunday deadline.
"The withdrawal process is conditional upon the Lebanese army deploying in southern Lebanon and fully and effectively enforcing the agreement, with Hezbollah withdrawing beyond the Litani River," a statement from Netanyahu's office said.
"Since the ceasefire agreement has not yet been fully enforced by the Lebanese state, the gradual withdrawal process will continue in full coordination with the United States."
Ceasefire mediators the United States and France have helped monitor its implementation.
- 'Be cautious' -
The accusation from the Lebanese army comes after UN chief Antonio Guterres called on January 17 for Israel to end its "occupation" of the south.
In a telephone call with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron, Lebanon's new President Joseph Aoun spoke of the "need to oblige Israel to respect the terms of the deal in order to maintain stability in the south," his office said.
Aoun said last week that Israel must "withdraw from occupied territories in the south within the deadline set by the agreement reached on November 27".
Macron's office, in its summary of the conversation, said Macron had called on all parties to the Lebanon ceasefire to honour their commitments as soon as possible.
Lebanon's army urged people to "be cautious in heading back to the southern border areas, due to the presence of mines and suspicious objects left behind" by Israeli forces.
Lebanese state news agency NNA reported that some people displaced from border areas had received international calls, purportedly from an Israeli military spokesperson, warning them not to return home.
It said several border villages had been sealed off by the Israeli army while troops carried out demolitions. It reported one resident wounded by Israeli fire.
A Lebanese government source told AFP that "caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati contacted the new US administration, warned of the gravity of Israel's attempt to circumvent the implementation of the ceasefire, and stressed the need to respect deadlines".
A Lebanese military source said Israeli forces had "completed their withdrawal from the western sector" of the south in early January, but "have not completed their withdrawal from the eastern sector as their withdrawal from the middle sector was delayed".
- 'Flagrant violation' -
Hezbollah began exchanging low-intensity cross-border fire with the Israeli army the day after the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel by its Palestinian ally Hamas which triggered the war in Gaza.
Israel intensified its campaign against Hezbollah in September, launching a series of devastating blows against the group's leadership that saw its longtime chief Hassan Nasrallah killed in an air strike in Beirut.
Hezbollah warned on Thursday that "any violation of the 60-day deadline will be considered a flagrant violation of (the ceasefire) agreement, an infringement on Lebanese sovereignty and the occupation entering a new chapter".
It said the Lebanese state should use "all means necessary... to restore the land and wrest it from the clutches of the occupation".
A committee composed of Israeli, Lebanese, French and US delegates and a representative of UN peacekeeping force UNIFIL is tasked with ensuring any ceasefire violations are identified and dealt with.
The UN peacekeeping force has reported Israeli violations of the terms of the ceasefire.
Guterres said peacekeepers had also found more than 100 weapons caches belonging "to Hezbollah or other armed groups".
Source: AFP
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