Three Israeli officials reported that Israel and Lebanon are discussing a pilot project supported by the United States under which Israeli forces will transfer control of some land in southern Lebanon to the Lebanese armed forces.
The officials explained to Reuters that the participating Lebanese forces will undergo American training and security checks to ensure they are not linked to Hezbollah, while Israel will maintain a military presence in the buffer zone.
This comes after the United States and Iran concluded the first round of negotiations in Switzerland, as part of the memorandum of understanding to finally end the war in the Middle East, which includes Lebanon. The two parties agreed during the talks to establish a “conflict resolution cell” in Lebanon to ensure there is no new escalation between Israel and Hezbollah.