Lebanon, Israel agree shortlist for Hezbollah disarmament monitors
Shafaq News- Beirut
Lebanon and Israel have agreed on a shortlist of countries that could verify Hezbollah's disarmament under a US-brokered agreement, with Washington set to choose one or more participants, Reuters reported on Friday.
A Lebanese official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters the two sides had agreed on a shortlist after ruling out countries deemed unacceptable to either party. The official declined to identify the countries under consideration or say how many were included on the list.
The shortlist was drawn up during meetings between Lebanese and Israeli officials in the US Embassy in Rome this week as part of efforts to implement a June 26 US-brokered agreement linking the phased withdrawal of Israeli forces from Lebanon to the disarmament of Hezbollah, with compliance to be verified by a third party.
Read more: South Lebanon framework: What we know so far
Earlier, Reuters reported, citing another Lebanese official and two foreign diplomats, that the United States and Israel had ruled out France as a participant in the verification mechanism.
Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran, is not a party to the agreement and has rejected calls to surrender its weapons. Israel has continued military operations in parts of southern Lebanon despite the ceasefire. According to Lebanon’s Health Ministry, Israeli attacks have killed 4,333 people and wounded 12,250 others, including women and children, as of Aug. 2.
