Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reportedly said that Israeli forces will not withdraw from southern Lebanon, even though it is a strict condition set by Iran for signing the peace deal.
In his first statements since Trump and the Iranian president actually signed the agreement on Wednesday, Netanyahu said: “We will restore security to the north.”
Netanyahu was quoted as saying in a statement: “This requires preserving the security zone in southern Lebanon, and requires that we do not leave it as long as Israel’s security needs require it.” The Times of Israel a report.
Three dead in Lebanon
Meanwhile, Israeli strikes killed three people in Lebanon on Thursday in two separate incidents. According to the official Lebanese National News Agency, the first attack occurred in the town of Kafr Tibnit, where a drone targeted a car carrying two people.
The two martyrs were identified as Bilal Kamal Hayek and Ali Ismail Al-Tufaili. HT was unable to independently verify the identities. In a separate attack, a man was killed in a drone strike in the southern town of Zabdin, according to the National News Agency.
The Lebanese Ministry of Public Health says that Israeli strikes have killed more than 3,900 people since the beginning of the Iran war, according to CNN.
“Close relations with the United States”
Netanyahu stressed the importance of maintaining Israel’s close relations with the United States, saying that Washington stood “shoulder to shoulder” with Israel during the war with Iran, according to what was reported by Agence France-Presse.
“The struggle is not over yet, and there are other challenges ahead of us,” Netanyahu said on one occasion, according to a statement issued by his office. “They require calm governance, a steadfast defense of Israel’s security interests, while at the same time maintaining our vital relationship with our American friends, who have stood side by side with us in this fight – a partnership that we value deeply.”
The report says Netanyahu will try to influence Trump
CNN, citing an Israeli source, reported that the Israeli Prime Minister aims to influence the final agreement with Iran by using right-wing media figures and senators to put pressure on President Donald Trump.
The report also notes that Netanyahu was suspicious of Iran’s intentions throughout the talks with the United States and was not acting in good faith. The source added that, according to Netanyahu, there will be no final agreement between the United States and Iran because Iran will not agree to stop its nuclear ambitions.
Since the deal was first announced, many right-wing leaders have opposed it, saying the US deal “does not” apply to Israel.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir wrote on the X website: “The Trump agreement does not bind us. Israel is not subject to the United States, and we are an independent and sovereign state!”
The far-right minister added: “We are not partners in this agreement that does not guarantee our security, nor does it bind us in any way. We must not give up anything less than the dismantling of Hezbollah, we must not withdraw from any area that our fighters have seized and cleared of terrorist infrastructure, we must not return to a situation in which thousands of terrorists sit on the walls of the northern settlements, and we certainly must not remain silent for a single moment in the face of fire directed at the State of Israel.”
Mark Levin, a pro-Israel broadcaster, said on Wednesday that the agreement “doesn’t make any sense,” and described the Iran Reconstruction Fund as a “slush fund,” according to CNN.
Netanyahu also told Trump that Israel does not see itself bound by the agreement, which requires an “immediate and permanent end” to the war in Lebanon.
Netanyahu is holding “stubborn” talks with Trump
Two Israeli officials told Reuters that Netanyahu is holding “stubborn” talks with the United States about continuing to deploy its forces in southern Lebanon.
Read also: The Iranian peace agreement was signed, but Israel is still unwilling to withdraw its forces from Lebanon
Another senior official said the outcome of these talks depends on Trump, whether or not he “decides to force the issue” by threatening consequences if Israel does not adhere to the terms of the agreement.
The agreement between the United States and Iran was actually signed on Wednesday. Trump signed it at the Palace of Versailles after attending the G7 summit in Evion, France. He then sent a photo of the signed document to Iranian leaders, after which the Iranian president signed the deal.
The agreement ends a war that lasted nearly three months, and opens a 60-day negotiating window to reach a final agreement with Iran.
