Lebanon's President Will Meet Trump    07/21 06:36

   

   BEIRUT (AP) -- Lebanon's president will meet with U.S. President Donald 
Trump on Tuesday to wrap up a four-day visit to Washington, in a bid to bring 
about long-term calm in the war-torn country after months of war between Israel 
and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group.

   Joseph Aoun's landmark meeting with Trump comes as Lebanon and Israel 
continue to hold rare direct talks mediated by Washington. Lebanon hopes they 
will result in Israeli troops withdrawing from large swaths of southern Lebanon 
that they currently occupy, and for the Lebanese military to receive support to 
assert full control in areas where Hezbollah militants had held sway.

   Lebanon and Israel announced a "framework agreement" on June 26, setting a 
plan for Israeli forces to withdraw from southern Lebanon as well as the 
disarmament of Hezbollah, which for decades had a strong presence in the area. 
It also lays out steps toward an eventual peace agreement between both 
countries, which have never held formal diplomatic ties and have been nominally 
in a state of war for nearly 80 years after Israel's establishment.

   The U.S. State Department announced Monday that operations in three villages 
deemed part of a "pilot zone" had begun, without giving details on what that 
entailed. Two of the three villages, Froun and Srifa, are not under Israeli 
military control and the Lebanese army is present there, while Israeli forces 
are in part of Zawtar al-Gharbieh.

   The Lebanese army in a statement said it was preparing for Israel to 
withdraw from Zawtar al-Gharbieh and that it had begun deploying troops to the 
area Tuesday. The Israeli military said it "will adjust its force posture in 
one of the pilot areas in order to enable the Lebanese Armed Forces to carry 
out their mission," without specifying the location.

   An Israeli military official, speaking on condition of anonymity in 
accordance with military guidelines said Tuesday that the withdrawal had not 
yet begun.

   Village mayor waiting for safety to be confirmed

   Abed Ezzeldine, Mayor of Zawtar al-Gharbieh said that they are waiting for 
the Lebanese military to tell him whether its safe for residents to check on 
their homes after they fully deploy and patrol the area. He is concerned about 
the safety of his village given that the Israeli military is still present in 
another village next door, while Israeli strikes continue nearby.

   "The villages are intertwined, so we don't feel safe because the Israelis 
are present there, they're on our borders and are not very far from us," 
Ezzeldine told The Associated Press, who said Zawtar al-Gharbieh is 
uninhabitable.

   "Once the army gives us permission to enter Zawtar al-Gharbieh, we as 
civilians will go in, but only to check it out and see how things are and then 
we will leave," he said. "We can't stay because the infrastructure is 
completely damaged and houses have been leveled. They (the Israelis) have 
bulldozed the roads."

   Rubio says US will continue to support framework agreement

   Aoun met with Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday, who said Washington 
will continue to endorse the Lebanese agreement and support the agreement's 
full implementation. Rubio described the meeting as "very positive" and warned 
that Lebanon will "never be fully at peace" as long as the Hezbollah issue is 
not resolved.

   "How do you replace Hezbollah? You defeat and replace them with a government 
that is strong enough to be the sole force of arms in the country," Rubio said 
after the meeting. Skeptics in Lebanon fear that a military confrontation with 
Hezbollah could lead to a civil war, as government officials have also urged 
for investment into the country's battered infrastructure to empower the 
weakened state, which Rubio echoed.

   "This is not just about military stuff," he added. "This is about how can we 
attract more U.S. and international investment into Lebanon."

   The Lebanese military last week increased its presence in some of the areas 
expected to be included in the pilot zone, including the three villages, with 
troops patrolling and setting up checkpoints. Though recent talks in Rome have 
signaled that the agreement's implementation will begin soon, Israeli troops 
have not withdrawn from the areas under control.

   Israeli officials, meanwhile, have said they plan to keep forces long term 
in a "security zone" in southern Lebanon.

   Hezbollah has dismissed the direct talks brokered by the United States and 
instead backed Washington's talks with their key ally and patron Iran to end 
their war, which also includes ending the war in Lebanon as a condition to 
bring back calm.

   Lebanon's government came to power on a reformist platform in early 2025, 
vowing to disarm all non-state groups including Hezbollah. It blames Hezbollah 
for dragging the country into another war with Israel in March when the 
militant group fired several rockets toward northern Israel after the U.S. and 
Israel attacked Iran.

   Beirut's leadership, however, has condemned Israel's subsequent ground 
invasion and massive aerial campaign in the country, which killed over 4,000 
people and displaced 1.2 million others. While grappling with stark political 
opposition from Hezbollah and allies within the deeply divided country, 
Lebanon's leadership insists that Israeli withdrawal and international 
financial support for Lebanon's cash-strapped army is crucial for a sustainable 
security solution.