Lebanon’s Aoun hopes US will press Israel to withdraw from southern areas

BEIRUT: ‌Lebanese President Joseph Aoun told US President Donald Trump that he hoped Washington would help prevent violations of ‌a framework ‌agreement with ‌Israel ⁠and ensure agreed commitments ⁠are fulfilled, particularly by pressing Israel to withdraw from ⁠occupied areas in ‌southern Lebanon, ‌the Lebanese ‌presidency said ‌on Saturday.
Aoun also told Trump in a phone ‌call that Lebanon would assume its ⁠responsibilities ⁠in implementing the framework agreement, the presidency added in a statement.
Aoun “said the Lebanese state would assume its responsibilities in implementing the framework agreement and expressed hope that the United States would help prevent any violations of the deal and ensure that all commitments are fulfilled, notably by pressuring Israel to withdraw from the areas it occupies in southern Lebanon to facilitate the deployment of the Lebanese army up to the international border,” Aoun’s office said in a statement.
At the end of the call, Trump said he looked forward to meeting Aoun in Washington soon, the statement said.
Lebanon, Israel and the United States on Friday signed a trilateral framework agreement aimed at paving the way for a peace deal between the two long-time Middle East adversaries.
The agreement — details of which were not announced in Washington — is the result of five rounds of talks in the US capital aimed at ending decades of hostilities and weeks of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.