Lebanon will reject US-backed proposals for its army to coordinate directly with Israeli forces when military talks resume in Tampa, Florida, on Tuesday, Lebanese officials told The National.
The negotiations aim to secure an Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon, while Israel insists Hezbollah must first be disarmed. One Lebanese official said Beirut would only accept talks with American mediation and third-party verification. A verification mechanism is meant to oversee so-called pilot zones where Hezbollah would disarm and the Lebanese army would take control, but progress has stalled since the first zones were set up in July.
Officials said they expected little movement before Israel's elections at the end of the month. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday he did not trust Lebanon's government to disarm Hezbollah.
Source: The National
