Illustrative image. (Israeli Defense Forces)
United States President Donald Trump urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, during a phone call last week, to begin withdrawing troops from southern Syria and Lebanon, Axios reported on July 14, citing American and Israeli officials.
According to the report, during the call, which took place on July 9, Trump warned that Israel’s military presence in Syrian territory is creating tensions that could lead to an escalation.
He told Netanyahu, “They don’t want you there. You should redeploy,” and made a similar request regarding Lebanon. Netanyahu, however, pushed back, citing Israel’s security needs.
The U.S. sought a security agreement between Israel and Syria for months but eventually concluded that Netanyahu was not willing to meet the necessary terms, including withdrawing troops from Syria.
The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office said last week that, during the call, Netanyahu stressed “the need for security zones along Israel’s borders.”
On April 15, Netanyahu described Israel’s military presence in “enemy territory” as a key accomplishment of the post-October 7 wars.
“There is no longer any containment of threats,” he said at the state memorial ceremony for Revisionist Zionist thinker Ze’ev Jabotinsky. “There are no longer terror armies on our borders. We have created buffer zones deep inside neighboring territories. The Gaza envelope is inside Gaza. The Lebanon envelope is inside Lebanon. The Golan envelope is inside Syria.”
Last month, Israel agreed to withdraw its forces from two designated “pilot zones” in southern Lebanon as part of ongoing negotiations with Beirut to allow the Lebanese Armed Forces to assume security control in those areas, with the aim of ensuring they are clear of Hezbollah weapons. More than two weeks have passed, however, and Israel has yet to withdraw from either pilot zone.
An Israeli-Lebanese meeting was held in Rome on July 15 to discuss the issue, and despite reports of progress from Lebanese media, the two sides apparently did not agree on the location of the “pilot zones.”
The pressure from the U.S. is real. Nevertheless, it is highly unlikely to result in any Israeli withdrawal from Syria or Lebanon.
Netanyahu clearly does not trust the new Islamist-led government in Syria, despite having engaged in several rounds of talks with Damascus.
As for Lebanon, Israel is likely planning to resume fighting against Hezbollah there, and in this context, a withdrawal is out of the question for Netanyahu. As for the ongoing talks with Beirut, they are likely nothing more than an attempt to appease Trump for the time being.
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the joo squatters will be evicted by hezbollah! heheheheh