The West

The IDF continued attacking Hezbollah targets in south Lebanon to enforce the ceasefire agreement, which prohibited the organization's presence south of the Litani. The IDF reported that in the year since the ceasefire, more than 370 terrorist operatives, most of them from Hezbollah, had been eliminated and there had been approximately 1,200 targeted ground operations to destroy terrorist infrastructure and damage the organization's military capabilities; The IDF continued activity to enforce the ceasefire agreement and prevent Hezbollah from rebuilding its military-terrorist capabilities, attacking a Radwan Force training compound and military facilities. The IDF renewed the targeted killings of Hezbollah terrorist operatives, including a senior operative who handled agents within Lebanon's security services; Hezbollah secretary general Na'im Qassem reiterated the organization's refusal to disarm and called on the Lebanese state authorities to "recalculate their course" and not make concessions to Israel; The Lebanese leadership expressed hope that the appointment of former ambassador Simon Karam as head of the Lebanese delegation to ceasefire oversite talks with Israel would prevent escalation. Parliament Speaker Berri said there could be no progress in negotiations unless Israel was willing to withdraw from positions in south Lebanon; The IDF canceled an attack on a building used by Hezbollah in a village in south Lebanon after Lebanese Army forces conducted searches despite residents' opposition; The Lebanese Army has reportedly completed 90% of the demilitarization of the area south of the Litani River and is expected to complete the mission by the end of the year. However, according to reports, the Lebanese leadership was warned that if it did not disarm Hezbollah north of the Litani as well, Israel would be given a free hand to attack Hezbollah, including in Beirut; Lebanese Foreign Minister Youssef Rajji said Hezbollah's weapons had not protected Lebanon or assisted the Gaza Strip and accused Iran of causing the greatest amount of regional destabilization. The Iranian foreign minister is expected to visit Lebanon and meet with senior Hezbollah figures in preparation for reshaping the organization's leadership; Given the growing pressure to shut down Hezbollah's al-Qard al-Hassan Association, the organization was reportedly considering changing its financial structure and its name. Read more...