Displaced Lebanese civilians have made their way back to southern towns designated by Washington as “pilot zones”, only to discover that the Israeli “withdrawal” they had been promised was nothing more than a carefully crafted ruse.
Scores of residents returned to the southern villages of Froun and Srifa on Tuesday after Washington announced the launch of the first “pilot zones” under the Lebanon-Israel Framework Agreement, which many Lebanese view as a disgraceful capitulation to Israeli demands.
Instead of witnessing an Israeli withdrawal, residents found that the zones, or at least most of them, “were never occupied by Israeli forces” to begin with.
“The inclusion of these villages is evidence that Israel is in fact not giving anything up, despite the framework agreement, and is instead able to remain in the other areas it has occupied,” villagers said.
Two Lebanese security sources confirmed the same narrative to Al Jazeera, stressing that two of the three designated “pilot zones” — Froun and Srifa — are simply not occupied.
Zawtar al-Gharbiya is the only one of the three where Israeli forces are actually present.
The US State Department officially launched the project on Monday, declaring that “pilot zone operations began in the villages of Froun, Srifa, and Zawtar al-Gharbiya in accordance with the Trilateral Framework”.
But on the ground, the reality was starkly different. Fierce resistance from Hezbollah prevented occupation forces from pushing into both Froun and al-Ghandourieh during the initial weeks of heavy fighting, a fact confirmed by local officials and correspondents on the ground.
Residents pointed to the sheer absurdity of the arrangement. “Israel is not giving anything up,” residents said. “Israel wants to sell us and the state empty walnut shells, calling it a pilot zone, when they never even entered it in the first place,” one local told Al Jazeera.
Rejecting his town’s designation as a pilot zone, the mayor of Ghandouriyeh said Israeli forces had never reached the area, asking, “How can they withdraw from an area where they are not present?”
The revelation that Israel is being credited with “withdrawing” from areas it never occupied underscores the utter humiliation of the US-brokered agreement signed between Lebanon and Israel.
Critics say the illegal deal, not endorsed by parliament, violates Lebanese law and effectively hands away Lebanon’s sovereignty in return for absolutely nothing.
Under the Framework Agreement, Israeli forces are to withdraw in phases while the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) deploy into designated areas.
The agreement also stipulates that future pilot zones can only be established through mutual consent between Beirut and Tel Aviv, a provision that effectively allows Israel to dictate where and when any further withdrawals take place.
However, Lebanese military sources have repeatedly stressed that the army will not operate under Israeli direction.
They said the LAF would not facilitate Israeli advances into areas occupation forces failed to enter because of fierce resistance during the aggression.
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and several members of his cabinet have publicly stated they have no intention of withdrawing from southern Lebanon.
Israeli media also reported that occupation forces have received no political directive ordering them to leave the areas they continue to hold.
Tensions surrounding the Framework Agreement deepened further on Wednesday when Israeli troops opened fire on Lebanese army units attempting to deploy into one of the designated pilot zones near Aita al-Shaab.
The Lebanese army said its troops were carrying out a routine deployment under the agreed security arrangements when Israeli forces opened fire without warning.
The shooting, it said, prompted Lebanese soldiers to return fire in self-defense before requesting an investigation by the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).
The Framework Agreement, which the Lebanese government has ordered to be put under wraps to avoid further embarrasment, requires Hezbollah to withdraw north of the Litani River and Israeli forces to leave Lebanese territory.
While the Lebanese army gradually deployed across parts of southern Lebanon, Israel never completed its withdrawal as required under the agreement, instead maintaining troops in five strategic positions inside Lebanese territory while continuing airspace violations and near-daily strikes.
