Israel Dissatisfied with Lebanese Army’s Performance in Pilot Zones

The pilot-zone mechanism was launched about a month and a half ago as a test for a broader plan to move Hezbollah’s infrastructure and weapons away from the Israeli border. The zones are intended to create a security buffer while the Lebanese Army assumes responsibility for security and searches in the area. Israeli officials have framed the zones as a prerequisite for any future Israeli pull-back.

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The American official emphasized that “we are working with both parties to reach a future arrangement, but it will take time” — the official’s full remark appears in the Verbatim Quotes section. Israeli security circles have debated two options: retaining control of the Ali al-Taher ridge or handing it over in an organized transfer to the Lebanese Army. Israel has briefed the United States on these options ahead of the resumption of direct Lebanon-Israel talks scheduled for next month. Political sources told *al-Joumhouria* that no date has been set for the eighth round of negotiations and that the Lebanese presidency awaits a response from the American mediator, which has conveyed Israeli demands that include granting the Lebanese Army authority to conduct searches, enter homes, and take control of the ridge—conditions described by the source as “impossible.”

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Israeli assessments suggest that most Hezbollah fighters on the ridge have been killed. *i24NEWS* estimated that 10 to 15 Hezbollah members remain inside the site, while Israeli forces monitor roughly 12 tunnel entrances with sensors and drones.

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• “We are working with both parties to reach a future arrangement, but it will take time,” — the American official

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