Defense Minister Israel Katz said Monday that Israel has “no territorial ambitions in Lebanon,” but the IDF will not withdraw “a millimeter” until the Hezbollah terror group is disarmed.

Katz’s comments came on the same day that the US Central Command chief met with both Lebanon’s president and its military chief in Lebanon, days after Jerusalem and Beirut signed a framework agreement aimed at ending their conflict, a move that has been repeatedly criticized by Hezbollah and its allies.

The deal commits Lebanon to restoring sovereignty over its territory through the “verified disarmament of non-state armed groups and dismantlement of associated infrastructure,” enabling a progressive Israeli withdrawal, according to the text released by the State Department.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said Monday that his country’s army plans to deploy up to the border with Israel in its efforts to displace Hezbollah.

Meanwhile, Israel again struck Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon overnight, in what it said was a response to the terror group’s attacks on its forces in the area.

Speaking to reporters on Monday, Katz said the military is unlikely to withdraw from additional areas of southern Lebanon beyond the two agreed-upon locations from which it will pull out as part of a pilot program that will see the Lebanese army take over.

“People should not hold their breath wondering where the next place will be from which Israel will withdraw in Lebanon, because it will not happen until Hezbollah is disarmed. We have no territorial ambitions in Lebanon, but until Hezbollah is disarmed, we will not withdraw a millimeter,” Katz said.

He said that principle was accepted by the US and anchored in the military annex to the framework agreement signed between Israel and Lebanon. Katz also noted that when he met US Central Command chief Adm. Brad Cooper last week, they agreed that “the IDF will not withdraw from the three security zones — in Lebanon, Syria, and Gaza.”

Katz said he also does not believe the Lebanese army will “suddenly become lions charging at Hezbollah,” and therefore the IDF’s presence in Lebanon will be “long term.”

The defense minister confirmed that Israel had recently tried to get the Lebanese army to enter the Ali Taher Ridge area, under which Hezbollah has a major tunnel system, and clear it of terror operatives. However, “the Lebanese army refused to do it,” Katz said. Currently, the IDF remains stationed in the area, but it has not entered the underground passages where some 30 Hezbollah operatives are believed to be holed up.

Briefing reporters, Katz claimed that had it not been for American pressure on Israel, the IDF would have caused Hezbollah’s collapse in Lebanon. He said the IDF had planned a “massive” aerial campaign that, he claimed, “would have dismantled Hezbollah,” and that the terror group was “begging the Iranians to save it.”

The defense minister blamed US President Donald Trump’s linking of the US-Iran talks with Lebanon........

© The Times of Israel