TNA Staff
The New Arab / April 13, 2025
Around 190 out of 265 Hezbollah sites located in southern Lebanon have been ceded to the Lebanese army.
Most military sites belonging to Hezbollah in southern Lebanon have been placed under Lebanese army control, a source close to the group said on Saturday.
A 27 November ceasefire that ended more than a year of conflict between Hezbollah and Israel, including two months of full-blown war which killed over 4,000 Lebanese, stipulated that only United Nations peacekeepers and Lebanon’s army should be deployed in the south.
The deal required the Iran-backed group to dismantle its remaining military infrastructure in the south and move its fighters north of the Litani River, which is about 30 kilometres (19 miles) from the Israeli border.
“Out of 265 Hezbollah military positions identified south of the Litani, the movement has ceded about 190 to the army,” the source said on condition of anonymity.
Under the ceasefire, Israel was ordered to complete its troop withdrawal from Lebanon by 18 February after missing a January deadline, but it has insisted to keep troops in five places it deems strategic, despite requests from the Lebanese to leave.
Israel has continued to attack several sites in Lebanon killing scores, in violation of the ceasefire.
In a speech on Saturday marking the anniversary of the outbreak of Lebanon’s 1975-1990 civil war, President Joseph Aoun renewed his appeal for Hezbollah to lay down its weapons.
“Because we all unanimously believe that any bearing of weapons outside of state authority… would jeopardise the interests of Lebanon… it is time for us all to say: ‘Lebanon can only be protected by the state, the army and the security forces,'” he said.
The United States deputy special envoy for the Middle East, Morgan Ortagus, discussed disarming Hezbollah with senior Lebanese figures during a visit to Beirut last weekend, a Lebanese official said.
In an interview with Lebanese television channel LBCI, Ortagus said that “we continue to press on this government to fully fulfil the cessation of hostilities, and that includes disarming Hezbollah and all militias”.
She said it should happen “as soon as possible”.
The United States chairs a committee, which also includes France, tasked with overseeing the ceasefire.
Following the outbreak of Israel’s war on Gaza in October 2023, cross-border fire flared between Israel and Hezbollah one day after.
Months of cross-border exchanges with Israeli forces escalated into full-blown war last September, with Israel bombing several parts of Lebanon, killing over 4,000. Several high-profile members of Hezbollah were killed in such strikes.
