From the Liveblog of
Monday, February 17, 2025
Israel planning to pull out of Lebanon tomorrow, Israeli official says
Lazar Berman is The Times of Israel's diplomatic reporter
Israel is planning on withdrawing from Lebanon tomorrow, an Israeli official tells The Times of Israel on condition of anonymity.
However, Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer has previously said the IDF will stay in five strategic locations in Lebanon’s south.
The ongoing ceasefire with Hezbollah stipulates that the pullout must be completed by a delayed deadline of February 18. Hezbollah is also meant to vacate southern Lebanon, with the Lebanese army maintaining the only military presence there.
“We intend to leave and fulfill the agreement,” says the official, “and of course, enforcement will continue.”
“As you see, we just killed a senior Hamas official there in Lebanon — in Sidon, not in southern Lebanon. So we will continue with determined enforcement and what happened before October 7 will not happen again.
“We will attack every threat we see, and we will make sure that Hezbollah does not evade and does not receive funding from Iran… It just will not happen.”
The Times of Israel Community.