Hezbollah leader Naim Kassem Photo: AFP
The leader of the Hezbollah group said on Sunday that Israeli troops should completely withdraw from Lebanon by 18 February, as they have “no reason” to continue their military presence in the southern part of the country. This was reported by Reuters.
Under a US-brokered ceasefire agreement signed in November, Israel was given 60 days to withdraw from southern Lebanon, where it had been conducting a ground offensive against the Iranian-backed Hezbollah group since October last year.
The deadline has been postponed until 18 February, but as Reuters sources reported last week, the Israeli army is seeking to maintain control over five military posts in the region.
Speaking in a pre-recorded address, Hezbollah Secretary General Naim Qassem said:
“Israel must withdraw completely on 18 February, without any exceptions or details on the five points… These are the terms of the agreement.”
According to him, any presence of the Israeli military in Lebanon after that date will be regarded as an occupation.
“Everyone knows how to deal with the occupiers,” Kassem added, but refrained from directly threatening to resume attacks on Israel.
At the same time, Israeli state television reported that the United States had allowed Israel to maintain its military presence in South Lebanon “for a long time”.
During the broadcast of Qassem’s speech, the Israeli Air Force conducted at least three air strikes in the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon. The army said it had attacked sites where Hezbollah rocket launchers and other weapons were located.
In addition, the group’s leader called on the Lebanese government to reconsider the ban on Iranian planes landing in Beirut.
Earlier, the Lebanese authorities temporarily banned such flights due to Israeli accusations that Tehran was using civilian air traffic to smuggle cash to finance Hezbollah.
This ban has left dozens of Lebanese stranded in Iran after a religious pilgrimage. Despite Lebanon’s attempts to send evacuation planes, Tehran refused to allow them to land.
On Sunday, Hezbollah militants staged a protest near the Beirut airport, and the Lebanese military used tear gas.
Qassem called the ban on Iranian flights “the implementation of Israeli instructions” and called on the Lebanese government to lift it:
“Let the plane land and let’s see what Israel does.”
