Hezbollah demands Israel leave Lebanon ‘unconditionally’ as US talks extend

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Qassem delivered the remarks in a televised address on Friday, on the Muslim holy day of Ashura, and as the latest round of United States-mediated ceasefire talks between Lebanon and Israel was extended in a bid to reach an agreement. The demand comes as Israeli troops remain positioned deep inside southern Lebanon. Israeli officials insist they will stay in Lebanon, despite Iran saying Israel is obliged to withdraw under the terms of the interim US-Iran ceasefire agreement that also covers Lebanon. Qassem described the US-Iran agreement as an “official declaration of defeat” for the US and Israel. “Israel has no option but to withdraw completely from every inch of our Lebanese land,” he said. “Israel must leave unconditionally.” While Israeli attacks in Lebanon have declined since the renewed ceasefire with Hezbollah started last week, they have not stopped. On Friday morning, an Israeli air raid hit the town of Nabatieh al-Fawqa, while two people were reported killed by an earlier Israeli raid in the town of Mayfadoun. Israeli forces later dropped leaflets over the southern town of Mansouri, demanding residents leave, according to Lebanese state media. Israel’s military reported that four of its soldiers, including two officers, were injured in close-quarter fighting with Hezbollah in Lebanon’s Beit Yahoun the day before. “Overall, there has been a reduction of violence, but Israel continues to carry out attacks,” reported Al Jazeera’s Zeina Khodr from Beirut, adding that many of the latest attacks have targeted frontline villages. Lebanese officials began direct talks with Israel in Washington in April. A fifth round of negotiations was expected to continue on Friday. Johnny Tannous, an Al Jazeera correspondent in Lebanon, reported that the talks have been extended for an additional day with the aim of reaching an agreement. Recent discussion has focused on a US-backed proposal for Israeli forces to hand some occupied territory back to Lebanon’s military, according to Reuters news agency. A US State Department official told the agency that Israel had taken a “concrete step” towards the proposal by pulling back from a part of a buffer zone in southern Lebanon. However, Lebanon’s military told Al Jazeera that did not happen. Zeina Khodr said Israel appears to be conditioning any withdrawal in Lebanon on “Hezbollah’s full disarmament”, while pressing for Lebanon’s army to dismantle Hezbollah infrastructure in areas north of the Litani River, which Israel has been unable to occupy. Israel believes its continuing attacks on frontline villages gives it more leverage with Lebanon’s government, Khodr cited security sources as saying. Former Lebanese diplomat Tracy Chamoun told Al Jazeera that Lebanon wants to secure a comprehensive ceasefire that Israel will fully commit to, in addition to Israel’s withdrawal. “I think the meeting [in Washington] is not going very well because the Lebanese delegation is not able to extract any promise or any commitments from Israel on those two points,” said Chamoun. Hezbollah’s parliamentary bloc has reiterated its refusal to negotiate directly with Israel, and demanded that the Lebanese authorities not grant Israel experimental areas north of the Litani River, Tannous said. Qassem, who has persistently denounced the Lebanon-Israel talks, said that Hezbollah would accept “no normalisation, no cancellation of the state of hostility, no gains for Israel”. He urged Lebanese authorities to “unite the ranks against the enemy” and not to follow the interests of the US and Israel. Lebanon’s “resistance” – a reference to Hezbollah – will stand with the government if it proceeds on the path of Lebanese sovereignty, added Qassem. Khodr said the statements are “a message to delegates in Washington”. Amid the international efforts to build a route out of the impasse, France and Italy have put forward an initiative to form an international coalition to help manage security arrangements and support Lebanon’s armed forces following the exit of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) peacekeeping force, which is due at the end of the year. Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun praised the initiative, saying it demonstrated the international community’s commitment to Lebanon’s sovereignty and stability. 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