The United States ambassador to Lebanon, Michel Issa (on the right), received by President Joseph Aoun, at Baabda Palace on July 9, 2026. (Credit: NNA)
BEIRUT — U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa, who met President Joseph Aoun at Baabda Presidential Palace on Thursday morning, said Israel's withdrawal from the "pilot zones" identified during negotiations between Beirut and Tel Aviv must not create a "vacuum."
Under the framework agreement reached during five rounds of U.S.-mediated talks since April, the Lebanese Army is to deploy to pilot zones — around Froun in the Bint Jbeil district and Zawtar, north of the Litani River in the Nabatieh district — as Israeli forces withdraw. The army is also tasked with dismantling Hezbollah's military infrastructure in those areas.
Hezbollah remains firmly opposed to direct negotiations, insisting that Lebanon's affairs should instead be addressed within the broader Iran-U.S. talks taking place under the Islamabad process. Overnight to Thursday, the U.S. and Iran both broke the cease-fire with dozens of strikes, mainly over tensions around the Strait of Hormuz.
Speaking after meeting with Aoun, Issa said "preparations are underway" to implement the framework agreement reached June 20 in Washington. As part of that process, he said, a U.S. military delegation will arrive in Beirut "in the coming days" to coordinate implementation and its timeline on the ground.
"It is essential that no vacuum be created during the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the concerned areas," Issa said.
Regarding the next round of negotiations, scheduled for July 14-15 in Rome, Issa said the Italian capital was chosen for "purely technical reasons" related to the travel schedules of the participating delegations.
The meeting will be "organizational and operational" in nature and is expected to establish "specialized working groups responsible for implementing the agreed arrangements, which may require the involvement of legal or technical experts depending on the issues addressed," he said.
Additional negotiating sessions will be held later, "in Rome or in other capitals," he added.
Issa also said Aoun's visit to Washington, scheduled for later this month, "reflects U.S. President Donald Trump's interest in Lebanon and his desire to promote security and stability there, as well as to put an end to the suffering of the Lebanese people."
During the meeting, Aoun stressed the need to "consolidate the cease-fire in southern Lebanon" and called for increased pressure on Israel to end its military operations and comply with the framework agreement.
He also urged Israel to "put an end to the bombardments and demolition operations" in the occupied towns and villages of southern Lebanon.
A fragile cease-fire took effect in June following the agreement between Iran and the United States. It has been violated by the Israeli army daily, which has continued attacks, demolition and explosive operations in the villages it occupies in southern Lebanon. Hezbollah has not responded militarily in recent weeks.
Meetings with Salam and Berri
Later Thursday, Issa met Prime Minister Nawaf Salam at the Grand Serail.
According to the state-run National News Agency, the two discussed the initial phase of Israel's withdrawal from the pilot zones in southern Lebanon ahead of the deployment of the Lebanese Army.
Issa also met Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri at Ain al-Tineh.
Rajji: Israel deal shows negotiations are 'exclusively Lebanese'
On Thursday, Foreign Minister Youssef Rajji said the framework agreement signed between Lebanon and Israel under U.S. auspices demonstrates that such decisions are a matter for the Lebanese state alone.
Speaking during a visit to Cyprus, Rajji said the deal "has demonstrated to everyone, first and foremost Iran, that negotiations are an exclusively Lebanese responsibility, to be decided by no one other than the Lebanese state."
As part of the interim deal with the United States, Iran insisted on Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon and an end to its months-long attacks.
Lebanon's Western-backed government and Hezbollah have exchanged angry words, and the group's supporters have blocked major roads in protest. One Hezbollah MP said the country would plunge into civil war if the government tried to force the group's disarmament, as demanded by Israel.
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