Overview
- U.S. officials said on July 9 that a U.S. military delegation will arrive in Beirut in the coming days to set up two "pilot zones" where the Lebanese Armed Forces would assume control once non-state fighters are verified disarmed.
- Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz publicly rejected U.S. statements that troops would pull back and said the Israel Defense Forces will remain in the southern security zone until Hezbollah is fully disarmed and the threat to northern Israel is removed.
- Israeli reporting says political leaders have ordered the IDF to freeze operations classified as "sensitive" at U.S. request and that limited withdrawals from pilot zones could begin as soon as next week, though official start dates remain unconfirmed.
- Hezbollah has rejected the June 26 U.S.-mediated framework and vowed to keep its arms, while Lebanese army capacity, the lack of a clear verification mechanism and no timetable for wider withdrawals raise major implementation gaps.
- Diplomacy now moves to technical talks in Rome on July 15–16 with CENTCOM coordinating the pilot-zone rollouts and international partners being solicited for support, but the plan faces the dual risks of on-the-ground resistance and regional escalation.