The Lebanese army announced Thursday that it had completed the first phase of its plan to disarm Hezbollah, covering the area in the country’s south between the Israeli border and the Litani River.

The announcement marked a potential milestone more than a year after a ceasefire ended a year-long war between the terror group and Israel. For decades, Hezbollah had been the most powerful force in Lebanon’s south.

But Israel, which maintains a troop presence in a number of key locations in southern Lebanon to defend the border, was skeptical about the Lebanese claim.

In a statement, the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) said it had “achieved the objectives of the first phase” of its plan in an “effective and tangible way.” But it added that there was more work to be done to clear unexploded ordnance and tunnels in the area, with an intention to extend its work to the rest of Lebanon.

The Lebanese army had set a year-end deadline to clear non-state weaponry — code for arms belonging to the Iran-backed terror group — from southern Lebanon. It says it has extended operational control over the south, except for the handful of areas still controlled by Israeli troops. Hezbollah, which has rejected efforts to disarm, did not immediately comment.

Israel sounded a cautious note on the announcement, saying the efforts from Beirut to disarm the terror group were “encouraging” but insufficient, and adding in a second statement that “Hezbollah is rearming faster than it is being disarmed.”

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Hezbollah’s disarmament was “imperative for Israel’s security and Lebanon’s future.” It added that efforts by the Lebanese government and the LAF “are an encouraging beginning, but they are far from sufficient, as evidenced by Hezbollah’s efforts to rearm and rebuild its terror infrastructure with Iranian support.”

In a subsequent statement, the Foreign Ministry said “extensive Hezbollah military infrastructure still exists south of the Litani River,” and that the mission to disarm the terror group in that area “remains far from being achieved.” It alleged what it called........

© The Times of Israel