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Aoun: 'No New Negotiations With Israel at Present,' Demands Withdrawal
(MENAFN) Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said Saturday that talks with Israel remain frozen for now, while reasserting Beirut's core demands: an Israeli troop withdrawal and the return of prisoners and displaced residents to their home areas.
"There are no new negotiations with Israel at present," Aoun told reporters while touring the southern city of Nabatieh, flanked by army commander Rodolphe Haykal and the heads of Lebanon's security agencies. He went on to describe withdrawal, the return of prisoners and displaced people, and reconstruction as non-negotiable national commitments his government intends to carry out, according to remarks carried by the state news agency NNA.
The comments came as a US official told Axios on Friday that the next round of Israel-Lebanon talks — originally slated for Rome next week — has been pushed back. In its place, Israeli and Lebanese ambassadors will meet at the State Department in Washington to review developments and progress on implementing the June framework agreement, the official said, adding that formal negotiations will resume in Rome in October.
Direct talks between Lebanon and Israel launched with a US-brokered meeting in Washington on April 14, with subsequent rounds tackling a ceasefire, Israeli withdrawal, border disputes, and the fate of prisoners and missing persons. Beirut and Tel Aviv signed a US-sponsored framework in Washington on June 26 outlining a phased Israeli pullback from Lebanese territory alongside deployment of the Lebanese army into areas Israeli forces vacate.
During his stop in Nabatieh, Aoun toured the local government complex — heavily damaged in Israeli airstrikes — along with the ruins of the Lebanese central bank building, destroyed in the bombardment. He also visited Nabatieh Hospital, commending staff for continuing to operate under strained conditions.
Israeli strikes in Lebanon have killed close to 4,400 people and wounded 12,500 more since March 2, per official Lebanese figures. Israel continues to hold territory in southern Lebanon, including land occupied for decades alongside additional ground seized during more recent conflicts and military campaigns.
"There are no new negotiations with Israel at present," Aoun told reporters while touring the southern city of Nabatieh, flanked by army commander Rodolphe Haykal and the heads of Lebanon's security agencies. He went on to describe withdrawal, the return of prisoners and displaced people, and reconstruction as non-negotiable national commitments his government intends to carry out, according to remarks carried by the state news agency NNA.
The comments came as a US official told Axios on Friday that the next round of Israel-Lebanon talks — originally slated for Rome next week — has been pushed back. In its place, Israeli and Lebanese ambassadors will meet at the State Department in Washington to review developments and progress on implementing the June framework agreement, the official said, adding that formal negotiations will resume in Rome in October.
Direct talks between Lebanon and Israel launched with a US-brokered meeting in Washington on April 14, with subsequent rounds tackling a ceasefire, Israeli withdrawal, border disputes, and the fate of prisoners and missing persons. Beirut and Tel Aviv signed a US-sponsored framework in Washington on June 26 outlining a phased Israeli pullback from Lebanese territory alongside deployment of the Lebanese army into areas Israeli forces vacate.
During his stop in Nabatieh, Aoun toured the local government complex — heavily damaged in Israeli airstrikes — along with the ruins of the Lebanese central bank building, destroyed in the bombardment. He also visited Nabatieh Hospital, commending staff for continuing to operate under strained conditions.
Israeli strikes in Lebanon have killed close to 4,400 people and wounded 12,500 more since March 2, per official Lebanese figures. Israel continues to hold territory in southern Lebanon, including land occupied for decades alongside additional ground seized during more recent conflicts and military campaigns.
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