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Hezbollah says delays in withdrawal of Israeli troops from southern Lebanon unacceptable

Commenting on the media leaks Israel may postpone its withdrawal, Hezbollah demanded that the Lebanese authorities exert pressure on the agreement’s sponsors - the US and France

BEIRUT, January 23. /TASS/. The Shiite Hezbollah movement has called on the Lebanese state to strongly oppose any Israeli attempts to dodge its obligations under the 60-day truce agreement that came into force on November 27 last year.

"We consider unacceptable the delay, under any fictitious pretext, of the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the territory of southern Lebanon. It should be completed by January 27," the organization said in a statement posted on its Telegram channel.

Commenting on the media leaks Israel may postpone its withdrawal, Hezbollah demanded that the Lebanese authorities exert pressure on the agreement’s sponsors - the US and France.

"The complete withdrawal of enemy forces, the deployment of the Lebanese army in all southern areas and the return of residents to their villages must be guaranteed," the statement reads. "Any concessions to Israel will be unacceptable, for they will merely prolong the occupation."

Hezbollah says that the authorities must use all means provided for by international law to "wrest Lebanese land from the hands of the invaders."

The truce agreement, concluded as a result of US-French mediation, provides for the deployment of the Lebanese army along the southern border with the support of UN peacekeepers and the withdrawal of Hezbollah militias beyond the Litani River. In return, Israel is obliged to pull its forces out of southern Lebanon within up to 60 days.