Brushing Off Trump, Israel Says IDF Will Stay in Lebanon Until Hezbollah Is Disarmed

Israel doesn’t need permission to stay in Lebanon, the country’s defense minister said on Thursday after President Trump suggested the IDF would be withdrawing. “We did not ask for permission from anyone to enter Lebanon, and we do not need permission to remain in Lebanon,” Defense Minister Yisrael Katz said, adding that Israeli soldiers will remain in the security zones in southern Lebanon until Hezbollah has been disarmed. “It is our right and duty to defend the residents of the Galilee and Israeli citizens from the threats of the jihadist terror group Hezbollah, which aims to destroy the State of Israel,” Mr. Katz added. Mr. Katz’s comments came after President Trump said Washington has a “deal with Israel and Lebanon. Yeah, they’ll leave. And I think it’s going to work out very well.”The Israel Defense Forces meanwhile announced on Wednesday that they had arrested a member of Hezbollah’s elite Radwan unit in the area of Bint Jbeil in southern Lebanon. “The apprehended terrorist is a member of Hezbollah’s Radwan Force — the organization’s elite commando unit responsible for carrying out attacks against IDF soldiers and Israeli civilians throughout the war,” the IDF said, adding that he was transferred to IDF’s Unit 504 for further questioning in Israeli territory.Representatives from Lebanon and Israel are scheduled to meet in Rome next week for another round of talks as the two countries seek to establish Hezbollah-free zones in southern Lebanon. Lebanon’s president, Joseph Aoun, is also scheduled to visit the White House on July 21, according to Reuters. Lebanon and Israel signed a 14-point framework agreement last month to formally end their war and recognize each other’s right to live in peace and security. The deal calls for the Lebanese army to restore control within the country and disarm Hezbollah while the Israeli military is to withdraw its troops from Lebanon once the terror group no longer poses a threat to Israel.Israel’s ambassador to America, Yechiel Leiter, said earlier this week that Jerusalem will “do everything” it can to “strengthen the Aoun-Salam axis,” referring to Mr. Aoun and Lebanon’s prime minister, Nawaf Salam.

Brushing Off Trump, Israel Says IDF Will Stay in Lebanon Until Hezbollah Is Disarmed

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