jordan pulse -

​Lebanon and Israel begin a seventh round of U.S.-sponsored direct negotiations in Rome on Tuesday, as Beirut seeks to achieve successive Israeli withdrawals from the south of the country.
​On June 26, Lebanon and Israel concluded a framework agreement following five rounds of negotiations. The agreement notably stipulates the disarmament of Hezbollah, Israel's gradual withdrawal from the territories it occupies in southern Lebanon, and the deployment of the Lebanese Army starting from "pilot zones."
​Washington and Rome announced last week that the round of talks would begin Tuesday and continue through Thursday.
​In a statement on Monday following phone calls with the heads of the Lebanese delegation, Simon Karam, and the Israeli delegation, Yechiel Leiter, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani urged both parties "to continue working in a constructive spirit by identifying joint solutions that enable the full implementation of the framework agreement."
​The previous round hosted in Rome resulted in an agreement on the withdrawal of the Israeli army from the outskirts of the town of Zawtar Al-Gharbiyeh—one of the "pilot zones" under the agreement—prior to the deployment of the Lebanese Army, which permitted residents to enter after conducting survey and inspection operations.
​While chairing a cabinet meeting on Monday, Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam reaffirmed the commitment to "pursuing successive Israeli withdrawals from Lebanese territory, leading to a complete withdrawal from Lebanon."
​On Tuesday, Hezbollah renewed its rejection of direct negotiations with Israel, considering that they "will bring Lebanon nothing but shame, humiliation, disappointment, and successive concessions."
​A U.S. State Department official stated last week that "technical delegations in Rome will focus on driving forward the full implementation of the framework agreement," pointing to expanding the scope of the "pilot zones," seeking to settle outstanding border issues, and drafting a comprehensive agreement for peace and security.
​However, U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa warned on Monday against "rushing forward" with the implementation of the agreement, considering that doing so "might endanger the civilians whom this process aims to protect."
​He added in a statement: "We believe that allocating the necessary time to accomplish this work... will contribute to enabling subsequent pilot zones to launch more efficiently."
​He maintained that both parties must agree on "a clear and practical mechanism before embarking on the next phase" of the agreement.
​Under the framework agreement, following its deployment in the "pilot zones," the Lebanese Army is supposed to disarm Hezbollah within those zones and prohibit any military presence of any group outside state forces, serving as a test case for a gradual Israeli withdrawal from other areas.
​Experts say the greatest challenge will arise when designating new "pilot zones" occupied by Israel, which will serve as a test of its seriousness regarding actual withdrawal, as well as the army's capacity to deploy and dismantle any military infrastructure belonging to Hezbollah.
​The group refuses to surrender its weapons or accept the outcomes of direct negotiations with Israel.
​The recent war broke out after Hezbollah launched rockets toward Israel in response to the killing of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei at the start of the joint U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran. Israel responded with an extensive campaign of airstrikes and a ground invasion of the south.
​The level of violence has decreased significantly in southern Lebanon since the signing of the memorandum of understanding between Washington and Tehran in June, coinciding with the continuation of negotiations between Lebanon and Israel.
​However, Israel—which reiterates its intention to maintain its forces in southern Lebanon within a "security zone" along its border up to ten kilometers deep—continues to carry out massive demolition and bombing operations of towns, the most prominent of which targeted the vicinity of the historic Shaqif Castle area on Thursday night.
​Source: Agence France-Presse (AFP) / Rum Online News لا