Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister visits military positions in country’s south

Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister has begun a tour of military positions in the country’s south, almost a month after a ceasefire deal that ended the war between Israel and Hezbollah.

Najib Mikati is on his first visit to the southern frontlines, where Lebanese soldiers under the US-brokered deal are expected to gradually deploy, with Hezbollah and Israeli troops both expected to withdraw by the end of next month.

Mikati’s tour comes after the Lebanese government expressed its frustration over ongoing Israeli strikes and overflights in the country. Israel says it targets ceasefire violations by Hezbollah.

“We have many tasks ahead of us, the most important being the enemy’s withdrawal from all the lands it encroached on during its recent aggression,” he says after meeting with army chief Joseph Aoun in a Lebanese military barracks in the southeastern town of Marjayoun. “Then the army can carry out its tasks in full.”

The Lebanese military for years has relied on financial aid to stay functional, primarily from the United States and other Western countries. Lebanon’s cash-strapped government is hoping that the war’s end and ceasefire deal will bring about more funding to increase the military’s capacity to deploy in the south.