The IDF withdrew most of its forces from southern Lebanon early Tuesday. It intends to maintain five outposts a few hundred meters from the border, with each manned by a company of troops for an indefinite period.
Overnight on Tuesday, the Lebanese army started to deploy in villages the IDF was leaving.
The Lebanese army said its units had deployed late Monday and early Tuesday in Al-Abbasiya, Al-Majidiya, and Kafr Kila-Marjayoun in the eastern sector; Al-Adisa, Markaba, Houla, Mays al-Jabal, Blida, and Mehibib-Marjayoun in the central sector; and Maroun al-Ras and the remaining part of Yaroun-Bint Jbeil in another sector.
It said its forces also had deployed in other border locations in the area south of the Litani River, in coordination with the Five-Party Committee overseeing the ceasefire agreement (mechanism) and the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).
“Specialized units have begun conducting engineering surveys, clearing roads, and handling unexploded ordnance and suspicious objects in these areas,” the Lebanese army said.
“The Army Command emphasizes the necessity for citizens to comply with the instructions of the military units deployed in the southern regions to facilitate the completion of these tasks as quickly as possible, while ensuring their safety and well-being,” it said.
Lebanese Armed Forces improving
Following the IDF’s withdrawal from southern Lebanon, Defense Minister Israel Katz on Tuesday said the IDF would act forcefully against any Hezbollah violation of the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire, citing the importance of it remaining in five strategic points in the buffer zone in Lebanon.
The military “will continue to strongly and uncompromisingly crack down on any Hezbollah violation,” he said.
“We are determined to ensure full security for all northern communities in accordance with the principle established after October 7: that only the IDF will guarantee the security of communities in all sectors against any possible threat,” Katz said.
A spokesperson for the Lebanese presidency on Tuesday said his country would consider any Israeli presence on its territory as an “occupation.”
Regarding the IDF forces at the five outposts, companies often range from 100-150 soldiers, constituting a small part of the larger forces, which likely will number as many as 10,000-15,000 soldiers, depending on various circumstances. The IDF did not specify the exact numbers for security reasons.
The five outposts are not formally part of the November 27 ceasefire deal signed between Israel and Hezbollah-Lebanon.
Israel has convinced the US that the Lebanese army is not effective enough to keep Hezbollah from entrenching in southern Lebanon and then potentially trying to attack.
Under the ceasefire, the Lebanese army was supposed to take over all potential Hezbollah positions in southern Lebanon, confiscate Hezbollah weapons, and prevent the terrorist group from sending fighters back into the area.
The Lebanese army was doing better than ever before and is surprisingly confronting Hezbollah in some instances, the IDF said Monday, adding that its performance is still far below where it would need to be to allow the IDF to withdraw the rest of its forces from southern Lebanon.
IDF sources suggested that a period of two to eight months for the outposts was easily imaginable, and the military could stay there much longer if needed for security reasons.
The five outposts will be located on the Lebanese side of the border running from west to east near: 1) Levona (near Shlomi on the Israeli side); 2) Ramia/Jabal Blat (Shtula); 3) Bleideh, Bint Jbeil, and Maroun a-Ras (Avivim); 4) Wadi Saluki (Margaliot); and 5) El Hiam, Kfar Kila, Ayoun Valley, and Aamra (Metulla).
According to the IDF, there is a hope that despite threats from Hezbollah to treat the five outposts as a continued occupation and basis for conflict, their location – close to the border – and size are limited enough to reduce friction with the broader Lebanese public.
The IDF said it would have about three times as many troops on the defense line of the border with Lebanon as it did before the war.
Furthermore, the IDF said it would be crucial to maintain an aggressive posture toward attacking Hezbollah in Lebanon anytime it attempts to sneak forces into southern Lebanon or tries to smuggle powerful weapons into any part of Lebanese territory.
IDF sources acknowledged that it would not be possible to completely prevent every single Hezbollah fighter from returning to southern Lebanon, since many of them can return under the guise of being civilian villagers who live there.
Nevertheless, the IDF said it had enhanced its intelligence collection capabilities to try to better distinguish between legitimate innocent Lebanese villagers and Hezbollah fighters and would work hard on the issue.
The IDF said while it would not rely solely on the Lebanese army, which has American advisers, the mechanism for reporting Hezbollah violations, with direct US oversight, was often working.
The IDF said since its September 30 invasion, it had succeeded in mostly clearing the five- to six-kilometer area of southern Lebanon near the border of Hezbollah weapons.
The IDF said it hoped many northern residents would return to their homes beginning on March 2, given improvements for defending them as well as progress in some areas in rebuilding infrastructure and houses destroyed by nearly 14 months of Hezbollah rocket and drone attacks.