1st LD Writethru: Israeli DM says military ordered to prepare for extended stay in S. Lebanon

JERUSALEM, June 27 (Xinhua) -- Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Saturday that he and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had instructed the Israeli military to prepare for an extended stay in the "security zone" in southern Lebanon.

In a statement, Katz described the framework agreement signed on Friday between the United States, Israel and Lebanon as a "historic event" and an important political and security achievement for Israel.

He said the agreement could help shape a new and safer reality along Israel's northern border and in Lebanon for the first time in decades, and strengthen the security of Israeli citizens over time.

He stressed that Israel is not withdrawing from Lebanon and is maintaining the "security zone" in southern Lebanon, "free of residents and terrorist infrastructure," while preserving the military's freedom of action to thwart threats.

Katz noted that the important principle stipulated in the agreement is that there will be no Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon as long as Hezbollah is not disarmed.

He also warned that if Iran attempts to attack Israel to prevent the implementation of the agreement, Israel would respond with great force and "illustrate the power gaps that exist between us."

Israel's state-owned Kan TV News reported Friday that the agreement includes the withdrawal of Israeli forces from two areas in southern Lebanon as part of a pilot program.

The two areas are located on opposite sides of the Litani River, where Lebanese army troops, accompanied by U.S. forces, will deploy following the Israeli withdrawal, according to the report.

The agreement also outlines measures to address Hezbollah's tunnels in southern Lebanon, curb the group's military buildup, and launch negotiations over the Israel-Lebanon land border, the report said.

On Friday, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that Israel and Lebanon had reached a U.S.-brokered framework agreement for "lasting peace and security."

The agreement, signed at the end of the latest round of ambassador-level talks in Washington, D.C., called again for the implementation of a fragile ceasefire between the two nations. Enditem