Israel will not withdraw from Lebanon even if there is an American demand, said the country’s defence minister Israel Katz on Wednesday.
“We have made it clear that under no circumstances will we withdraw, and as of this moment – and this is a diplomatic achievement – there is no American demand for Israel to withdraw from Lebanon,” said Israel Katz, speaking at the MUNI EXPO conference in Tel Aviv.
Katz said he had clarified Jerusalem’s position to his US counterpart Secretary of State Marco Rubio, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had conveyed the same to US President Donald Trump.
Katz’s comments come amid the second day of talks between Israel and Lebanon under the auspices of the Trump administration.
Katz had already said that IDF troops will continue to be stationed in southern Lebanon, but his latest comments made his position explicit.
“200,000 [Lebanese] residents will not return [to the homes they evacuated]. Because what happened in the past in security zones, where there was also [Lebanese] civilian population [present], was roadside bombs and attacks against the soldiers, and therefore we will not allow that,” he continued, adding “We are not withdrawing.”
Israel was earlier reportedly considering “symbolic” withdrawals from some territory in southern Lebanon as part of the talks as a “gesture” to the Lebanese government.
