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Lebanon, Israel Conclude US-Brokered Talks on ‘Pilot Zones’ in Rome

This photograph shows the US embassy in Rome on July 14, 2026, on the first day of talks between the Lebanese and Israeli delegations on the backdrop of a regional escalation between Washington and Tehran. (AFP)
This photograph shows the US embassy in Rome on July 14, 2026, on the first day of talks between the Lebanese and Israeli delegations on the backdrop of a regional escalation between Washington and Tehran. (AFP)
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Lebanon, Israel Conclude US-Brokered Talks on ‘Pilot Zones’ in Rome

This photograph shows the US embassy in Rome on July 14, 2026, on the first day of talks between the Lebanese and Israeli delegations on the backdrop of a regional escalation between Washington and Tehran. (AFP)
This photograph shows the US embassy in Rome on July 14, 2026, on the first day of talks between the Lebanese and Israeli delegations on the backdrop of a regional escalation between Washington and Tehran. (AFP)

Lebanon and Israel ‌concluded US-brokered talks in Rome on Wednesday, with a US official saying they had made progress on implementing a plan that could see Israeli forces begin to withdraw from some parts of southern Lebanon within days.

The two longtime foes held ambassador-level talks at the US embassy in Rome on Tuesday and Wednesday — their sixth round of face-to-face negotiations since a new war erupted on March 2 between Israel and Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, triggered by the ‌wider regional conflict.

Under ‌a US-brokered June 26 framework deal, ‌Lebanon ⁠and Israel agreed to ⁠implement a "pilot zone" project that would see the disarmament of armed groups — an apparent reference to Hezbollah — as well as the deployment of Lebanese troops to the south and the progressive withdrawal of Israeli forces still occupying Lebanese land.

In written comments distributed to journalists, a US official ⁠described the two days of talks ‌as "productive and positive".

"We agreed on the ‌structure and guidelines for the pilot zone process, to be ‌finalized and implemented in the coming days," the official ‌said.

The official said talks would move to a technical phase to implement the framework deal and reach a "comprehensive agreement between Israel and Lebanon."

There was no immediate comment from either Lebanon ‌or Israel on progress made in the talks.

Israel's military is occupying what it describes ⁠as a "buffer ⁠zone" about 10 km (6 miles) into Lebanon along the entire length of the Israeli border. Israeli officials say the zone is necessary to protect northern Israeli communities from attacks launched by Hezbollah.

Lebanon has called for Israel to begin withdrawing immediately, but Israel has said its troops would remain in southern Lebanon as long as Hezbollah remained armed.

The direct talks have continued despite intermittent deadly Israeli strikes and strong objections from Hezbollah, which rejects disarming and says only pressure from its ally Iran can secure an end to the war and Israel's withdrawal.

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Arab World

Could Hezbollah Launch a New War in Support of Iran?

Supporters of Hezbollah carry Iranian and Hezbollah flags during a memorial ceremony for slain Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in the southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon, 08 July 2026. (EPA)
Supporters of Hezbollah carry Iranian and Hezbollah flags during a memorial ceremony for slain Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in the southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon, 08 July 2026. (EPA)
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Could Hezbollah Launch a New War in Support of Iran?

Supporters of Hezbollah carry Iranian and Hezbollah flags during a memorial ceremony for slain Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in the southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon, 08 July 2026. (EPA)
Supporters of Hezbollah carry Iranian and Hezbollah flags during a memorial ceremony for slain Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in the southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon, 08 July 2026. (EPA)

Amid deteriorating regional conditions and faltering US-Iranian understandings, Lebanese people fear that Hezbollah may once again launch a new round of war in support of Iran. This follows the party’s previous interventions, including its 2023 campaign backing Gaza and its retaliation for the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in March this year.

Lebanon has witnessed a drop in Israeli military operations, which have reached their lowest levels in weeks, despite Israel's continued occupation of a security zone extending up to ten kilometers deep inside Lebanese territory. Hezbollah has also halted all military operations since the ceasefire was announced in mid-June.

However, the resumption of attacks between the US and Iran leads observers to believe that Tehran could once again request its regional proxies, including Hezbollah, to reignite all fronts in its support, should it perceive that the situation is heading toward a major escalation against it.

These fears are compounded by past statements by Hezbollah lawmakers and leaders. Most recently, MP Ali Ammar pledged to stand behind Iran in the event of a new war.

Conversely, during his latest appearance, Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem insisted on maintaining the diplomatic track between the US and Iran, while fiercely attacking the path of direct negotiations between Lebanon and Israel.

Political analyst Qassem Qassir, who is close to Hezbollah's positioning, noted that “no one can definitively determine the red lines drawn by Hezbollah, which, if crossed, would prompt a return to resistance in its broadest sense.”

“However, it is expected that a broad Israeli assault on the Ali al-Taher hill would naturally compel the group to defend it,” he told Asharq Al-Awsat.

“The same applies if attacks target other Lebanese areas still outside direct Israeli control, or if the enemy resumes wide-scale offensives and attacks against Nabatieh, Tyre, the southern suburbs of Beirut or other regions,” he added.

“Ultimately, the decision rests with Hezbollah's leadership, which has confirmed through its Secretary-General that it will not accept a return to the status quo prior to March 2” when the war with Israel erupted, he said.

“Consequently, matters remain contingent upon favorable conditions on the ground as well as the political climate. For instance, should direct Lebanese-Israeli negotiations hit a dead end, it could prompt the resistance [Hezbollah] to resume direct military operations,” he remarked.

Security and defense analyst Dr. Riad Kahwaji said: “The red lines that could prompt Hezbollah to resume fighting are determined by Iran, not the party's own leadership.”

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, he added: “Tehran alone decides when the party will reopen the support front.”

Arab World

Israeli NGO Slams Investment Plan for West Bank Settlements

Construction cranes tower above a construction site in Givat HaMatos, an Israeli settlement suburb of Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem on January 2, 2026. (AFP)
Construction cranes tower above a construction site in Givat HaMatos, an Israeli settlement suburb of Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem on January 2, 2026. (AFP)
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Israeli NGO Slams Investment Plan for West Bank Settlements

Construction cranes tower above a construction site in Givat HaMatos, an Israeli settlement suburb of Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem on January 2, 2026. (AFP)
Construction cranes tower above a construction site in Givat HaMatos, an Israeli settlement suburb of Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem on January 2, 2026. (AFP)

An Israeli NGO on Wednesday condemned a government plan to invest around $2.7 billion in infrastructure and thousands of new residential units across several settlements in the occupied West Bank.

Since Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took office in 2022, his government has rapidly expanded settlements in the West Bank, drawing criticism from rights groups and the UN.

Earlier this week, Netanyahu and far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich signed an umbrella agreement to invest in settlements in the north of the Palestinian territory.

"This is another significant step in the settlement revolution we are leading in Judea and Samaria," Smotrich said on X, using the biblical name for the West Bank.

"As part of the agreement, approximately 12,000 new housing units will be established, alongside an investment of more than eight billion ILS (approximately $ 2.7 billion) in infrastructure, public institutions and settlement development."

Netanyahu hailed the agreement.

"Not only do we defend this place, we elevate it," he said.

Israeli anti-settlement watchdog Peace Now slammed the decision, accusing the government of squandering public funds and entrenching the occupation of the West Bank.

The group said the move would complicate any future withdrawal from the West Bank and the creation of a Palestinian state.

"Umbrella agreements are used for the rapid development of large-scale projects," Hagit Ofran, a spokeswoman for Peace Now, told AFP.

"From the government's perspective, it is a double win: unbridled construction in the settlements, along with shackling the next government to commitments that will make it difficult to roll back this terrible government's reckless policy."

Since taking office, Netanyahu's government, widely seen as one of the most right-wing in the country's history, has approved the establishment of 102 settlements in the West Bank, according to Peace Now.

All Israeli settlements are illegal under international law.

Excluding east Jerusalem, more than 500,000 Israelis live in settlements in the West Bank, which Israel has occupied since 1967, among some three million Palestinians.

Arab World

Syria Says Arrested Assad-Era Officer Specializing in Chemical Weapons

People sit across from a poster depicting Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in a gas mask during an event in the opposition-held northern city of Afrin, on August 20, 2023, marking the 10-year anniversary of chemical attacks that killed over 1,400 people in Ghouta, near the capital. (AFP)
People sit across from a poster depicting Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in a gas mask during an event in the opposition-held northern city of Afrin, on August 20, 2023, marking the 10-year anniversary of chemical attacks that killed over 1,400 people in Ghouta, near the capital. (AFP)
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Syria Says Arrested Assad-Era Officer Specializing in Chemical Weapons

People sit across from a poster depicting Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in a gas mask during an event in the opposition-held northern city of Afrin, on August 20, 2023, marking the 10-year anniversary of chemical attacks that killed over 1,400 people in Ghouta, near the capital. (AFP)
People sit across from a poster depicting Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in a gas mask during an event in the opposition-held northern city of Afrin, on August 20, 2023, marking the 10-year anniversary of chemical attacks that killed over 1,400 people in Ghouta, near the capital. (AFP)

Syrian authorities announced on Wednesday the arrest of a former officer they say was a chemical weapons specialist in charge of sarin gas depots and chemical weapons manufacturing during ousted President Bashar al-Assad's era.

Since Assad's fall in December 2024, authorities have arrested dozens of people they say committed crimes during the country's 13-year civil war, and started trials in April.

The interior ministry said security forces had arrested Colonel Ahmed Habib Ali, calling him "a chemical weapons expert".

Colonel Ahmed Habib Ali after his arrest. (Syrian Interior Ministry)

It also said he "was responsible for sarin gas storage facilities and chemical manufacturing within Unit 417", a key chemical weapons storage facility near the capital, Damascus.

According to the ministry, Ali was "one of the officers who supervised the manufacture of about 20 bombs loaded with sarin gas, each weighing 250 kilograms, which were used in attacks targeting Syrian cities and towns in 2013 and 2017".

In the first and deadliest instance in August 2013, the army was accused of using chemical weapons to target areas then under opposition control, killing more than 1,400 men, women and children, according to US intelligence and rights groups.

An aerial view shows a mass grave where are buried those who were killed by the sarin struck during a 2013 chemical weapons attack that was blamed on then President Bashar al-Assad's forces, in Zamalka neighborhood, on the outskirts of Damascus, Syria, Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2024. (AP)

With Syria at the height of its civil war, the Assad government agreed to hand over its chemical arsenal in order to avert US strikes.

Between 2014 and 2017, Damascus was accused of launching four further attacks on towns controlled by opposition factions, using sarin and chlorine gas.

Ali's arrest comes after Syria was reinstated into the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) last week.

The OPCW had stripped Syria of its voting rights in 2021 after finding its air force had used sarin and chlorine gas on its own people.

In April, Syria's judiciary began a series of public trials for former officials on various charges, some of which amount to war crimes committed after the outbreak of popular protests in 2011, which were violently suppressed by the authorities.