Item 1 of 2 A destroyed building, as Lebanese army troops deploy in the area following the withdrawal of Israeli forces, under a U.S.-brokered plan, in southern Lebanon, in Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh, Lebanon July 22, 2026. REUTERS\/Aziz Taher<\/p>\n
[1\/2]A destroyed building, as Lebanese army troops deploy in the area following the withdrawal of Israeli forces, under a U.S.-brokered plan, in southern Lebanon, in Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh, Lebanon July… Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab<\/a> Read moreUnusual direct talks between states still formally at warFirst Israeli pullout begins under US-backed planLebanon demands full Israeli withdrawalIsrael says it will stay as long as Hezbollah armedBEIRUT, July 22 (Reuters) – Lebanon and Israel are scheduled to hold their next round of \u200bU.S.-brokered talks on August 4 in Italy, a Lebanese official told Reuters on Wednesday, as the two \u200ccountries begin implementing<\/a> a plan for Israeli withdrawals and Lebanese army deployments in southern Lebanon.The two longtime foes have held more than three months of face-to-face talks, billed as a way to put a permanent end to hostilities since a new war erupted on March 2 between Israel \u200band Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, triggered by the wider regional conflict.<\/a><\/p>\n Sign up here.<\/a><\/p>\n The ambassador-level direct meetings are unusual for countries that remain \u200bformally at war and have had no normal diplomatic relations through decades of invasion, military \u2060occupation and cross-border conflict.<\/p>\n Five meetings hosted by the United States produced a framework<\/a> deal late last month which foresees the disarmament \u200bof Hezbollah, the progressive withdrawal of Israeli troops from southern Lebanon and the deployment of Lebanese troops.<\/p>\n The ambassador-level talks have since \u200bmoved to the Italian capital so delegations could discuss the technical details and guidelines of the pilot zones — the term for the geographical areas where that phased process would be implemented.<\/p>\n LEBANON PRESSES FOR FULL ISRAELI PULL-OUTThe first Israeli withdrawal under the pilot zone programme took place<\/a> this week.<\/p>\n Israeli forces \u200bpulled out of the southern Lebanese town of Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh and the Lebanese army began deploying troops there, but asked \u200bresidents to delay their return until the town was cleared of unexploded ordnance.<\/p>\n Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam visited Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh on Wednesday and \u200cplanted a \u2060Lebanese flag there, saying the state would work to reopen roads, clear rubble and restore public services so that residents could return.<\/p>\n Salam said Israel’s withdrawal was a significant first step but that Lebanon wanted a full Israeli withdrawal from all Lebanese territory.<\/p>\n Israel continues to occupy what it describes as a buffer zone about 10 km (6 miles) inside Lebanon along the length of the \u200bborder, where Israeli troops have \u200bordered the local populations \u2060to leave and razed villages. Israeli officials say the zone is necessary to protect northern Israeli communities from attacks by Hezbollah.<\/p>\n Despite a ceasefire that came into force last month, controlled demolitions \u200bhave continued, Lebanese security sources said.<\/p>\n Tens of thousands of Lebanese people remain displaced, unable to return \u200bhome<\/a> because their \u2060villages remain occupied by Israeli troops or have been destroyed.<\/p>\n Israeli officials have said they will remain in southern Lebanon as long as Hezbollah remains armed. The group has rejected the Lebanese government’s direct talks with Israel and has refused to disarm in full.<\/p>\n During his \u2060first official \u200btrip to Washington, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said that Israel’s withdrawal from \u200bLebanon could remove “the root cause that Hezbollah has long cited as its justification”.<\/p>\n Only then could Hezbollah be disarmed, Aoun told guests at a reception at the \u200bLebanese embassy in Washington, according to comments shared by his office.<\/p>\n Reporting by Maya Gebeily and Tala Ramadan, Editing by William Maclean<\/p>\n Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab<\/a><\/p>\n