US To Deepen Footprint In Lebanon As Part Of Ceasefire Deal

Via Middle East Eye

The US is set to deepen its footprint in Lebanon as part of a ceasefire deal aimed at ending more than a year of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. According to details of the agreement shared with Middle East Eye by current and former US and Arab officials, the 60-day ceasefire will see all Israeli forces withdraw from Lebanon in phases, with Hezbollah moving north of the Litani River.

The deal which was announced late Tuesday is broadly based on UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah and was supposed to see the Lebanese army and the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil) deployed to southern Lebanon.

As per the deal, the Lebanese army, with assistance from Unifil, will be deployed to the south to ensure that Hezbollah does not re-enter the area between the Israeli border and the Litani.

“By day 60 there will be no Israeli or Hezbollah troops in southern Lebanon,” a senior Arab official told Middle East Eye. 

The agreement, which seeks to end more than a year of fighting that has claimed more than 3,700 lives in Lebanon, will also see the US deploy technical military advisers to Lebanon and see Washington provide additional funds to the Lebanese army.

The US will also provide oversight on Hezbollah’s withdrawal and a military official – likely from Central Command (Centcom) – will head an international committee that will coordinate with hundreds of soon-to-be-deployed French soldiers as part of a beefed-up UN peacekeeping mission.

A senior US official told MEE that Israel will not be granted the right to attack Lebanon based on any suspicious movements. Israel will have to report any movement it deems suspicious to the international committee, which in turn will inform the Lebanese army to take the necessary action.

If the Lebanese army fails to act after receiving a complaint regarding suspicious activities south of the Litani or in any Lebanese area, Israel will consider the agreement void and resume its attacks on Lebanon.

The US is not expected to deploy additional troops on the ground. Instead, the pending ceasefire is set to expand the 10,000-strong Unifil peacekeeping mission. Hundreds of French soldiers are expected to deploy to Lebanon as part of Unifil, according to the former US and Arab official. 

The agreement will also deepen the US’s ongoing efforts to support the Lebanese military. The US started funding the Lebanese army in 2005 after a protest movement prompted the withdrawal of Syrian troops from the country.

In the last 20 years, Washington has been the army’s largest donor, giving more than $2.5bn in support to the military, which is seen as a national institution that crosses sectarian and political divides.

The sources told MEE that the army has already recruited 1,500 troops and seeks to bring on board roughly 3,500 more in the next four months. 

The US will also beef up training, equipment and reimbursement funds to the army. Washington is also speaking with Saudi Arabia and Qatar about providing funds to the Lebanese forces to pay additional salaries. Qatar already provides funds to the cash-strapped Lebanese army, pledging $60m in 2022 to support soldiers’ salaries.

Lebanon was in the midst of a disastrous financial crisis before Hezbollah began launching missiles and drones at Israel on 8 October 2023 in solidarity with Palestinians under attack in Gaza.

The ceasefire will also include a renewed commitment to several other UN Security Council resolutions, including 1559 and 1680, which call for the disarmament of Hezbollah. 

Unlike other Lebanese armed groups, Hezbollah kept its weapons after the 1975-90 civil war so it could continue to fight against Israel’s occupation of south Lebanon. Though Israel mostly withdrew in 2000, it continues to occupy the Shebaa Farms, which Hezbollah says are Lebanese.

Hezbollah’s year-long attacks have displaced around 60,000 Israelis from their homes in northern Israel. Meanwhile, Israeli bombardment and the ground invasion launched in October have forced more than a million people in Lebanon to flee.