Israel asks US for assurances that it has freedom to enforce Lebanon ceasefire requirements

Netanyahu said, ‘The main issue is … Israel’s ability and determination to enforce the agreement and thwart any threat to its security from Lebanon.’

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

As progress continues on the Lebanon ceasefire proposal, Israel has requested a commitment from the US that it has the freedom to respond if Hezbollah violates provisions, Reuters reports.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke to US envoys and insisted on Israel’s continued ability to deal with threats from Hezbollah and guarantees for security on the northern border so 40,000 Israeli evacuees can return to their homes.

Netanyahu spoke to the envoys shortly after a deadly Hezbollah attack that killed five people in Metula, with another two killed by shrapnel in Kiryat Ata.

Netanyahu said, “The main issue is … Israel’s ability and determination to enforce the agreement and thwart any threat to its security from Lebanon.”

The envoys, Brett McGurk and Amos Hochstein were in Israel with the hope of securing a ceasefire to end the conflicts in Lebanon and Gaza.

In addition to meeting with Netanyahu, the envoys also discussed the proposal with Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Shin Bet director Ronan Bar, Mossad director David Barnea, and other senior Israeli officials.

An initial draft of a US ceasefire proposal calls for Hezbollah to comply with a previous agreement to retreat from Lebanon’s border with Israel and for the IDF to withdraw from Lebanon within a week, as reported by Kan news.

The proposal, presented by top US security official Amos Hochstein, outlines an initial 60-day truce followed by a permanent ceasefire.

One requirement is the enforcement of UN Resolution 1701, adopted at the end of the Second Lebanon War in 2006, which called for “the establishment between the Blue Line and the Litani river of an area free of any armed personnel, assets, and weapons other than those of the Government of Lebanon.”

The enforcement of Resolution 1701 would create a buffer zone free from Hezbollah and would potentially allow the safe return to their homes of over 40,000 displaced Israelis.

The current ceasefire proposal stipulates that only the Lebanese army, besides UNIFIL, would be the only armed group in Southern Lebanon.