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<\/a><\/p>\nPublished On 14 Aug 202614 Aug 2026<\/p>\n
Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam is pushing for a clear timetable for Israel\u2019s withdrawal from Lebanese territory, as Hezbollah\u2019s leader accuses Lebanon\u2019s government of exposing the country\u2019s own army to disgrace by pursuing the deal at all.<\/p>\n
According to a statement released by the prime minister\u2019s office on Friday, Salam met United States ambassador to Beirut Michel Issa and General Joseph Clearfield, who heads the US military coordination group for Lebanon, to discuss the military track of the negotiation framework with Israel, along with the latest developments in southern Lebanon.<\/p>\n
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\u201cSalam stressed the need for Israel to stop destruction operations, expand the scope of pilot areas, and set a clear timetable for Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory,\u201d the statement said.<\/p>\n
Lebanon\u2019s Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri met the same US officials separately.<\/p>\n
\u201cIsrael has not stopped its violations and attacks on Lebanon,\u201d he said, citing continued village demolitions, bulldozed farmland, forest fires and damage to heritage sites.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe key to stability remains forcing Israel to stop its war and withdraw<\/a> to the international border.\u201d<\/p>\n Issa called the talks \u201cpositive\u201d and said negotiations would continue, without giving a date for the next round.<\/p>\n \u2018Ongoing humiliation\u2019<\/p>\n Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem hit back on Beirut\u2019s remarks, accusing Lebanese officials of putting the army under \u201cundue pressure\u201d by implementing a non-functional agreement.<\/p>\n \u201cHow can you accept this ongoing humiliation of the Lebanese army, exposing it to bombardment and Israeli pressures, instead of acting as its protectors?\u201d Qassem said on Friday.<\/p>\n He accused Israel of trying to bind Lebanon to an oversight body controlling the army\u2019s deployment and internal operations.<\/p>\n Qassem pointed out that Israel has kept striking homes and demolishing tunnels inside Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh<\/a>, the first designated pilot zone, despite the Lebanese army\u2019s presence there.<\/p>\n He challenged officials to \u201cname a single achievement from the seven rounds of negotiations\u201d.<\/p>\n