Israel says it has begun withdrawal from Lebanon

[garyoak99]

Israeli troops have begun handing over control of territory in southern Lebanon to the U.N. observer mission, the Israeli military announced early Thursday.

 

Already, half the area south of the Litani River has been turned over to the U.N. Interim Forces in Lebanon, which has about 2,000 troops, the Israeli military said.

 

Under the terms of the U.N.-brokered peace agreement, U.N. forces will eventually number 15,000 in southern Lebanon and could comprise troops from France, Turkey, Malaysia and Pakistan.

 

The United nations plans to deploy within two weeks an additional 3,000 to 3,500 troops in southern Lebanon as a "vanguard force," working with Lebanese troops to consolidate the cease-fire there, according to Deputy Director of U.N. Peacekeeping Hedi Annabi.

 

Thursday's transfer was "conditional on the reinforcement of UNIFIL and the ability of the Lebanese Army to take effective control of the area," the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement.

 

Word of the withdrawal came hours after the Lebanese Cabinet unanimously approved the deployment of 15,000 troops to southern Lebanon beginning Thursday, a Cabinet minister told CNN.

 

The measure was approved to speed up the deployment of U.N. forces and the withdrawal of Israeli troops.

 

What do you think of this withdrawal? Is this a good idea for Israel? Will this cease-fire work?