Hezbollah rejected an Israeli-Lebanese deal reached during negotiations in Washington on Wednesday, according to Reuters.
The deal called for the withdrawal of Hezbollah troops north of the Litani River, Reuters reported, citing Hezbollah Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem. The deal reached between the Israeli and Lebanese governments in the U.S. calls for the Lebanese military to take over the area south of the Litani, according to the State Department.
Hezbollah was not represented in the Washington-based peace talks.
This deal aimed to continue the longstanding U.N. agreement calling for “the establishment between the Blue Line [the Israeli-Lebanese border] and the Litani river of an area free of any armed personnel, assets and weapons other than those of the Government of Lebanon and of UNIFIL [United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon],” according to U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701 from Aug. 11, 2006.
Hezbollah Media Relations Officer Youssef al-Zein, the Lebanese Embassy in Washington, the Israeli Embassy in Washington, and the State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The White House referred the Daily Caller News Foundation to the State Department.
“We do not discuss intelligence or hypothetical situations,” the Pentagon told the DCNF when reached for comment.
“Washington Declaration … [is] a roadmap for the extermination of a segment of the Lebanese people and the enslavement of the rest,” Qassem said. “As long as the occupation exists, the resistance will continue.”
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have been operating in the area between the Blue Line and the Litani River since May 26, Reuters reported.
IDF armored vehicles and infantry units were seen advancing toward the southern Lebanese town of Zawtar al-Sharqiya, Reuters reported, citing Hezbollah. Zawtar al-Sharqiya is located North of the Litani River.
The IDF denied Hezbollah’s claims, The Times of Israel reported.
The most recent hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah have been ongoing since March 2, according to the IDF.
Both the Lebanese and Israeli governments condemned Iranian actions that “undermine stability throughout the Middle East,” according to the State Department.
The Lebanese-Israeli deal came after months of Israeli bombing in civilian residential areas, including Beirut. An Israeli bombing campaign in Lebanon called Operation Eternal Darkness killed 361 people and injured over 1,000 on April 8, the BBC reported.
Lebanon has sustained nearly 3,000 deaths and nearly 9,000 injuries since the conflict began, according to Lebanese Ministry of Public Health figures from May 14. Over 1.2 million Lebanese have been displaced, according to the Associated Press. Israel has lost 27 soldiers and three civilians since the conflict began.
Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei told Reuters that a ceasefire in Lebanon was key to any U.S. peace deal.
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