• Beirut demands Israeli withdrawal before Rome talks on July 15-16
• Official says US-backed pilot zones to place Lebanese army in control within days
• Amnesty calls for Israeli strikes on civilians to be investigated as war crimes

BEIRUT: A US delegation is expected to arrive in Lebanon soon to oversee the implementation of Israel’s withdrawal from southern “pilot zones”, the Lebanese presidency reported on Thursday, citing the American ambassador.

Lebanon is demanding that Israel withdraw from these zones before participating in a new round of negotiations scheduled for July 15 and 16 in Rome, according to a diplomatic source familiar with the talks.

The developments follow a June 26 framework agreement between the two countries that calls for Hezbollah’s disarmament and a gradual Israeli withdrawal from occupied Lebanese territory. Simultaneously, the Lebanese army is to deploy into designated pilot zones.

The US Ambassador to Lebanon, Michel Issa, told President Joseph Aoun that “an American military delegation will arrive in Beirut in the coming days to determine the mechanism for implementation on the ground”, according to the presidency’s statement.

“It is essential to avoid any vacuum when Israeli forces withdraw from the designated area,” Issa said.

However, the agreement, which Hezbollah has rejected, does not set a firm timetable for Israel’s withdrawal. Israeli officials have vowed their forces will remain in a 10-kilometre deep “security zone” as long as Hezbollah remains armed.

Aoun called on the United States to “exert pressure on Israel to halt military operations and comply with the provisions of the framework”. He is expected to visit Washington later this month at the invitation of President Donald Trump.

A US official said on Thursday that the first pilot zone, where the Lebanese army will assume control of an area currently occupied by Israeli forces, will launch in “a matter of days”, with further zones being mapped out.

Amnesty urges probe into Israeli war crimes

Meanwhile, Amnesty International on Thursday accused Israel of wiping out families during strikes on Lebanon, calling for the attacks to be investigated as war crimes.

Lebanon was drawn into the wider Middle East war after US-Israeli forces assassinated Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, prompting the group to launch retaliatory strikes against Israel.

Tel Aviv responded with major airstrikes and a ground invasion that has killed more than 4,300 people, including more than 250 children, according to Lebanese authorities.

Amnesty analysed three strikes on civilian homes between March 6 and 13, in which 24 civilians were killed, 12 of them children.

The London-based rights group said it reached out to Israeli authorities, who responded that some attacks “were carried out against Hezbollah military objectives” and others were “referred for examination”.

Authorities maintained they were “committed to mitigating harm to civilians during operational activity”.

“Despite follow up, the Israeli military did not provide specific information regarding the three attacks … including what the targets may have been,” Amnesty stated.

Its findings in the investigation were based on interviews with 15 people, including survivors, relatives, paramedics, journalists who visited attack sites and local officials.

“Based on the evidence gathered, in each of these air strikes, Amnesty International has reasonable basis to conclude that Israeli forces violated international humanitarian law, including by failing to distinguish between civilians and military objectives, by carrying out attacks directed against civilians or civilian objects, or by failing to take all feasible precautions to minimise harm to civilians,” the report read.

Kristine Beckerle, Amnesty’s deputy regional director for the Middle East and North Africa, said the Israeli military “obliterated entire families, including a dozen children, in Lebanon, demonstrating a callous disregard for civilian lives”.

“States must impose an immediate comprehensive arms embargo on Israel and use universal and extraterritorial jurisdiction to investigate and prosecute those responsible,” Beckerle added.

Published in Dawn, July 10th, 2026