Israel’s defence minister, Israel Katz, has said Israeli forces will remain in southern Lebanon, complicating efforts to turn a recent Iran-US ceasefire into a broader regional peace agreement.

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Speaking at an event in Tel Aviv, Katz said Israeli troops would not withdraw from territory captured in southern Lebanon, reinforcing the position previously outlined by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Lebanon Stance Clouds Iran-US Peace Effort

Katz said the Israeli military was prepared to stay in the area and noted that Washington was not currently pressing Israel to leave Lebanese territory. Israel maintains what it describes as a security zone in parts of southern Lebanon.

Dispute Over Terms of Iran-US Accord

The comments come days after the United States and Iran signed an agreement extending a fragile ceasefire and launching 60 days of negotiations aimed at reaching a permanent settlement.

However, differences quickly emerged over how the accord should be interpreted. Tehran argues that any lasting agreement must include an end to Israel’s military campaign in Lebanon and a withdrawal of Israeli troops from the country’s south.

Israel and Lebanon are meanwhile engaged in separate US-mediated talks focused on security arrangements and a potential Israeli withdrawal. Israel has proposed a phased handover of territory to the Lebanese army, which would be responsible for preventing the return of Hezbollah fighters.

Hezbollah is not participating in those negotiations, raising questions about how effective any agreement could be on the ground.

Iran has sought to tie progress in its own negotiations with Washington to developments in Lebanon. On Wednesday, Iranian parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said a ceasefire and an end to the war in Lebanon were as important to Tehran as ending hostilities involving Iran itself.

Fighting Continues Despite Ceasefire

The conflict in Lebanon began after Hezbollah launched rockets at Israel on 2 March following the killing of Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei. Israel responded with a military offensive that expanded into southern Lebanon.

According to figures cited in the report, more than 4,200 people have been killed in Lebanon since the fighting began. Hezbollah attacks have also killed at least 36 Israeli soldiers and three Israeli civilians.

Although a US-mediated ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah took effect on Saturday and has significantly reduced hostilities, violence has not entirely stopped. Lebanese health authorities said an Israeli drone strike near Nabatieh on Wednesday killed two people.

Gulf Allies Voice Concerns

Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is touring Gulf Arab states in an effort to reassure regional allies about the Iran agreement.

Rubio met senior leaders in the UAE and is scheduled to visit Kuwait and Bahrain. The Gulf states remain concerned that proposed sanctions relief and financial support for Iran could strengthen Tehran militarily.

The talks have also focused on security in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping route that was largely disrupted during the recent conflict, causing major economic losses and driving up global energy prices.

Additional disagreements have surfaced over inspections of Iran’s nuclear facilities. While US President Donald Trump said Iran had agreed to extensive inspections, Tehran has stated that no such inspections will take place until a final agreement is reached.

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Adapted by ASEAN Now. Source 25 June 2026

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Bibi claimes neither lead each other.

President Trump, time is now to kick his ass and make your MOU work

I guess if the Iran backed Hezbollah terrorists weren't attacking Israel there would be no need to stay in southern Lebanon. Having said this IMO withdrawal should happen and let Hezbollah break the peace. If the terrorists stop firing missiles after that then that's a positive. If they don't then they have broken the deal and IDF moves back in.

2 hours ago, webfact said:

According to figures cited in the report, more than 4,200 people have been killed in Lebanon since the fighting began. Hezbollah attacks have also killed at least 36 Israeli soldiers and three Israeli civilians.

These numbers clearly indicate what is happening. Israel kills at will, without any consideration for civilians.

34 minutes ago, stevenl said:

These numbers clearly indicate what is happening. Israel kills at will, without any consideration for civilians.

As with Gaza you must ask yourself how many killed are combatants and how many are civilians. Also bear in mind that terrorists use civilian areas as missile launch sites.

8 minutes ago, dinsdale said:

As with Gaza you must ask yourself how many killed are combatants and how many are civilians. Also bear in mind that terrorists use civilian areas as missile launch sites.

Thanks for expanding on the point made. Look at the comparison, Hezbollah killed less than 10% civilians. How many of those 4300 killed by the IDF would have been Hezbollah? Israel kills at will.

21 minutes ago, dinsdale said:

As with Gaza you must ask yourself how many killed are combatants and how many are civilians. Also bear in mind that terrorists use civilian areas as missile launch sites.

Whilst I certainly do not condone putting missile launchers next to schools and hospitals, the whole of Gaza is/was a civilian area.

19 minutes ago, animalmagic said:

Whilst I certainly do not condone putting missile launchers next to schools and hospitals, the whole of Gaza is/was a civilian area.

Alas when you move military into civilian areas and use that military offensively the civilian area loses it's status of a no strike zone. As for Gaza there were areas away from civilians that missiles could have been, and indeed were, launched from. Hamas used human shields with no regard to the consequences of said human shields.

Apart from this the so-called 'genocide' could have been avoided very easily and the war would have been over if Hamas released the hostages. As it turned out when the hostages and the bodies of hostages were released the war ended.

If this is Bibi's last word I'm sure, the Street of Hormuz will be closed soon, and clown Donnie is to be left empty-handed.

32 minutes ago, dinsdale said:

Alas when you move military into civilian areas and use that military offensively the civilian area loses it's status of a no strike zone. As for Gaza there were areas away from civilians that missiles could have been, and indeed were, launched from. Hamas used human shields with no regard to the consequences of said human shields.

Apart from this the so-called 'genocide' could have been avoided very easily and the war would have been over if Hamas released the hostages. As it turned out when the hostages and the bodies of hostages were released the war ended.

The war ended, so the killing has stopped? Stop spouting nonsense and IDF propaganda points.

I have been saying this for a long time: Israel wants all Palestinians out of Gaza.

4 hours ago, webfact said:

Israeli forces will remain in southern Lebanon

Ironically using a similar sovereignty strategy of Putin's Russia: invade, suppress, and genocide the population.

IDF is getting their ass handed to them on the ground. All they can do is bomb civilization from air in retribution. Ben Gvir’s noose is tightening around his own neck. 😂

IDF remaining in Southern Lebanon will simply be a thorn in the Iran/US negotiation. Give Iran the reason to procrastinate the talks. Iran is better off in the MOU with the 60 days oil sanction waiver. They are expected to earn $3 billion and may even get the frozen assets. They will demand total IDF withdrawal before they start talking about the nuclear issues. US has zero leverage in this up-coming talks and Trump has literally washed his hands and walk away from further Iran aggression. Domestic politics will dominate his attention. Pressure is on Netanyahu to withdraw.

6 minutes ago, Eric Loh said:

IDF remaining in Southern Lebanon will simply be a thorn in the Iran/US negotiation. Give Iran the reason to procrastinate the talks. Iran is better off in the MOU with the 60 days oil sanction waiver. They are expected to earn $3 billion and may even get the frozen assets. They will demand total IDF withdrawal before they start talking about the nuclear issues. US has zero leverage in this up-coming talks and Trump has literally washed his hands and walk away from further Iran aggression. Domestic politics will dominate his attention. Pressure is on Netanyahu to withdraw.

For the moment there is no pressure on nethanyahu to withdraw. That pressure would only materialize if the US exerts it. At present, no chance of that happening.

9 minutes ago, stevenl said:

For the moment there is no pressure on nethanyahu to withdraw. That pressure would only materialize if the US exerts it. At present, no chance of that happening.

Agree no chance presently. I am implying that pressure is growing and shifting politics in the House to halt at least some of the weapon sales and more debates on the extent of aid to Israel. Then there are clashes over Israel military escalation and strong criticism by Trump of Netanyahu's actions. The strongest pressure will likely be the stalled nuclear talks which Trump paint himself to a corner with his big claims.

1 hour ago, Eric Loh said:

Agree no chance presently. I am implying that pressure is growing and shifting politics in the House to halt at least some of the weapon sales and more debates on the extent of aid to Israel. Then there are clashes over Israel military escalation and strong criticism by Trump of Netanyahu's actions. The strongest pressure will likely be the stalled nuclear talks which Trump paint himself to a corner with his big claims.

My only hope is Trump gets angry enough and he decides it is time to withdraw military aid to show he is boss, not Bibi.

The whole World would indeed cheer. Trumps wet dream

Nationalism is a heavy cross. Israel and Iran both have it in spades.

If Iran withdraws from negotiations that lies solely on Bibi's ego. Iran always prefers to win so three bill will not be their consideration. They plan for long-term hegemony.

I have never supported Hezbollah because they have committed many, many terrorist acts in and on Israel. However, in the current war, these Lebanese are freedom fighters, protecting their own country's sovereignty. My opinion is that they're not fighting Israel for Iran. They're fighting for their own country, Lebanon. Israel may be getting handed its lunch.

The only solution to Israeli's nastiness is for the US to cut off weapons, funding and maybe temporarily diplomatic relations. If Israel squirrels the peace deal, that would be a just reaction.

Anything to mess up the peace process, anything to sabotage a ceasefire with Iran, anything to create chaos, mayhem, murder, genocide and the loss of life for more women and children, which seems to be the Israeli way these days.

Israel. The new terrorist state in the Middle East. A state that has lost all moral authority and has become a worldwide pariah.

Israel, a classic case of being "the monkey wrench in the machinery" / "the spanner in the works".