The Speaker of Parliament, Nabih Berri, in his office in Ain al-Tineh during the reception of French diplomat Stéphane Séjourné, on April 28, 2024. (Credit: Mohammad Yassine/L'Orient-Le Jour)
BEIRUT — Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said Tuesday that he remains committed to a “full cease-fire,” stressing that Hezbollah’s withdrawal from south of the Litani River should take place “in parallel” with a complete Israeli withdrawal from the area and the return of residents. “What are called pilot zones are unacceptable to me,” he said, a day after meeting with U.S. Ambassador Michel Issa, who said he had “clarified” certain aspects of the arrangement during discussions with Berri.
A cease-fire agreement was reached at the end of the fourth round of Israeli-Lebanese-American negotiations in Washington on June 2 and 3. Berri, along with his ally Hezbollah, rejected the agreement, describing it as “unjust.” Issa said that “the pilot zones proposed under the agreement would be open to the return of residents, under the protection of the Lebanese Army and safe from Israeli strikes.” Under the proposal, both the Israeli army and Hezbollah would withdraw from these zones in parallel with the deployment of the Lebanese Army.
Meanwhile, the Lebanese presidency said Tuesday that President Joseph Aoun was briefed by Ambassador Simon Karam, head of the Lebanese delegation to the Washington talks, on the latest round of discussions with the Israeli side at the State Department. The diplomat also informed the president about preparations for the next meeting, scheduled for June 22.
Prime Minister Nawaf Salam also received Karam on Tuesday. They discussed the need to consolidate the cease-fire, begin implementing the “pilot zones,” deploy the Lebanese Army there, and facilitate the return of residents, as part of a broader Israeli withdrawal to internationally recognized borders.
The Lebanese presidency also said that Aoun reviewed the general situation in Lebanon and the region during a phone call Tuesday with French President Emmanuel Macron. The conversation focused on progress in the tripartite talks in Washington, “aimed at ending the military escalation and restoring calm and stability to Lebanese territory,” the presidency said. According to the statement, Macron reaffirmed “France’s support for Lebanon and its people,” while Aoun thanked him “for the assistance France has provided to Lebanon and the Lebanese people during the difficult circumstances the country is facing.”
