Lebanese PM plants flag in town vacated by IDF, touts ‘beginning of complete withdrawal’

By Lazar Berman

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22 July 2026, 11:56 am

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Lazar Berman is The Times of Israel's diplomatic reporter

In this photo released by the Lebanese Government press office, Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, center, raises a Lebanese flag during a visit to the southern village of Zawtar Al Gharbieh, Lebanon, July 22, 2026. (Lebanese Government press office via AP)

Pictures released by Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam show him planting a Lebanese flag in Zawtar al-Gharbiya following the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the area.

The town sits in a pilot zone that Israeli soldiers vacated this week to allow the Lebanese Armed Forces to enter.

The planting “represents the beginning of the Israeli withdrawal from our land,” says Salam in a message shared by his office on X.

رئيس #مجلس_الوزراء الدكتور #نواف_سلام يغرس علماً لبنانياً في ساحة بلدة زوطر الغربية#لبنان #pcm pic.twitter.com/ckqJwvSUjp

— رئاسة مجلس الوزراء ???????? (@grandserail) July 22, 2026

“What we are witnessing today is merely a beginning,” he continues, “but we are determined and steadfast, and we will continue to mobilize all our political and diplomatic efforts to secure the complete withdrawal from all Lebanese territories.”

He tells residents of southern Lebanon that his government is doing everything possible to facilitate them returning to their homes.