BEIRUT: Israel confirmed the release of five Lebanese detainees held by its military, Israeli media reported on Tuesday, citing the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
They were captured during Israel’s ground offensive in southern Lebanon that began on Oct. 1 last year, and after the Nov. 27 ceasefire went into effect.
This move followed deliberations by the committee overseeing the implementation of the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah.
It came as a direct result of intensified Lebanese diplomatic pressure on the supervisory committee.
“President Joseph Aoun met US Gen. Jasper Jeffers, head of the international committee monitoring the implementation of the ceasefire agreement, along with his team, the US Ambassador to Lebanon Lisa Johnson, the US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for the Middle East Natasha Franceschi, and the US Defense Attaché in Lebanon Col. Joseph Becker,” a source inside the Presidential Palace told Arab News.
“President Aoun urged the committee to pressure Israel into a full withdrawal from the Lebanese border region, particularly from the five hills still under Israeli occupation. He also called for the release of the Lebanese individuals taken hostage by Israel, emphasizing that Lebanon does not hold any Israeli hostages. Therefore, there is no justification for delaying the process under the pretext of a prisoner swap, and holding Lebanese people hostage offers no advantage to Israel,” the source added.
According to a statement from the president’s office, Aoun requested that “these demands be raised during the committee’s meeting on Tuesday.”
Reports from southern Lebanon indicate that Israel currently holds 11 Lebanese citizens — seven Hezbollah members, three civilians, and a soldier.
Earlier on Monday, the Lebanese Army Command announced that “the Israeli Army captured Lebanese soldier Ziad Shibli on the southern border after communication with him was lost.
It was later revealed that Israeli forces shot him while he was in civilian clothing on the outskirts of the border town of Kfarchouba. The soldier was injured and subsequently transferred to occupied Palestinian territories.
Israeli violations of Lebanese sovereignty persist, with a military drone targeting a vehicle on the road between the towns of Romin and Wadi Al-Zahrani in the heart of southern Lebanon. The attack resulted in the death of the driver, identified as Hassan Ezzeddine from the town of Houmine Al-Tahta, and a member of Hezbollah.
Israeli Army radio later claimed that “the dead man was an official in Hezbollah’s air defense unit.”
Israeli drones have been used in a campaign pursuing Hezbollah members in the south, despite a ceasefire agreement being in effect for less than four months.
On Dec. 7, an Israeli drone killed a biker in Deir Seryan, whose identity was not revealed.
Another drone killed a Hamas official on Feb. 17 in Saida Mohammed Chahine.
On March 4, an Israeli drone killed Khodr Hachem, a Hezbollah official, who “held the position of commander of the naval forces in Hezbollah’s Radwan Unit,” according to Israeli claims.
As part of the efforts to accelerate the Israeli withdrawal from the south, Speaker Nabih Berri met the ambassadors of the Quintet Committee.
Following the meeting, Egyptian Ambassador to Lebanon Alaa Moussa said the discussion focused on “the importance of the Israeli withdrawal from the south.”
He added: “The Quintet Committee is currently working on reaching a formula that leads to the complete Israeli withdrawal.”
The diplomat clarified that “they didn’t discuss the details of ceasing hostilities, but focused on the importance of the Israeli withdrawal.”
He said Berri “affirmed his commitment to implementing the ministerial statement and the oath speech.”
