Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Wednesday that the US hasn’t asked Israel to withdraw its troops from southern Lebanon despite Iran maintaining that a withdrawal is necessary to implement the US-Iran Memorandum of Understanding, which calls for an end to Israel’s war.
“We have announced that in any case we are not withdrawing and, as of this moment – and this is a diplomatic achievement – there is no American demand for Israel to withdraw from Lebanon,” Katz said.
The Israeli minister vowed that Israel would stay in Lebanon “even if there is an American demand” and that Lebanese civilians would not be able to return to the IDF-occupied areas.
“There will be no civilians and no terrorists. Why? Because what happened in the past in security zones where there was also a civilian population was that there were explosives and attacks against soldiers, and therefore, we do not allow that,” Katz said, according to Haaretz.
“Soldiers in, residents out. The infrastructure is destroyed, the houses are dangerous and ruined. We are not withdrawing,” he added.
Also on Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he wouldn’t withdraw from Lebanon as long as he remains in power, which could be just a few more months, as Israel is set to hold elections in October, or potentially even earlier.
“As long as I am prime minister, we will maintain the security zone in southern Lebanon,” Netanyahu said. “We will be the first in the world to solve the explosive drones problem.”
While both President Trump and Vice President Vance have criticized some of Israel’s conduct in Lebanon, neither has publicly called for an Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon, and there’s no sign the administration is considering cutting off military aid to either pressure Israel to end the war or leave Israel on its own.
While Israeli attacks in Lebanon have subsided since the weekend, they haven’t stopped, and at least three people were killed by IDF strikes on Wednesday.
Lebanese and Israeli officials held talks in Washington on Tuesday, and before the negotiations, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said that Beirut would accept “nothing less than an end to the Israeli occupation.” According to Al Monitor, the two sides are discussing a potential US-backed proposal for the IDF to hand over some territory to the Lebanese military, and that the US would “vet” the soldiers for ties to Hezbollah, though the plan would allow Israel to stay in parts of Lebanon near the border in what’s being called a “buffer zone.”
