US and Lebanese delegations meet in Beirut while Israeli forces raid southern Lebanon

Military delegations from the United States and Lebanon met in Beirut to discuss implementation of the first phase of a US-brokered framework agreement for Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon. Lebanese sources said the talks centered on establishing a mechanism for the first of two pilot zones outlined in the deal.

A US delegation arrived in Beirut after US ambassador Michel Issa informed President Joseph Aoun on July 9 that the group would determine the mechanism for carrying out the agreement.

The framework was reached on June 26 and calls for the Lebanese military to assume full control of the two small pilot zones. The agreement sets no timetable for withdrawal. Israeli officials have stated their forces will remain in a 10 km security zone as long as Hezbollah stays armed.

Hezbollah has opposed direct talks between Lebanon and Israel. On July 11, Israeli forces carried out raids in southern Lebanon, including residential areas of al-Mansouri in Tyre district where seven people were injured. Forces also advanced with three tanks and bulldozers into Beit Yahoun, set fires in Houla that damaged homes and olive trees, and blew up homes in Nabatieh district.

The war that began in early March 2026 has displaced more than one million people in Lebanon. As of July 11, more than 732,000 had returned home while about 430,000 remained displaced, according to the UN humanitarian agency OCHA. The next round of Lebanon-Israel talks is scheduled for Rome on July 15 and 16.

Lebanon has conditioned its participation on Israeli withdrawal from the two pilot zones. President Joseph Aoun is expected to visit Washington later in July at the invitation of US President Donald Trump.