The Occupation Withdraws From Villages at the Deadline but Retains Five Strategic Hills With U.S. Approval /  The Ministerial Statement: Commitment to the State’s Monopoly on Arms, a State That Defends and Liberates, and Dialogue for a Defense Strategy

 February 18, 2025

The political editor wrote

The anticipated deadline of February 18 arrived – a date engineered by the Americans as the end of the 60-day period stipulated in the U.S.-brokered and -guaranteed ceasefire agreement. This extension had granted the occupation additional time in Lebanese territory under flimsy pretexts, with a renewed promise of full withdrawal by the new deadline. Now that the date has arrived, the occupation, once again under American cover, has declared its continued presence on the strategic hills overlooking the border villages. According to Israel’s official broadcasting authority, the occupation forces completed their withdrawal from these villages by midnight but remain entrenched on five key hills:
al-Aziyah Hill: Located 2 km from the border near Deir Seryan, overlooking the Litani River from Al-Mahmoudiyah to Zoutr; al-Oweida Hill: Positioned 1 km from the border between Adaisseh and Kfar Kila, this is the only hill overseeing the Metula settlement and other Israeli settlements in the Galilee Panhandle;
Labouneh Hill: Just 300 meters from the border, spanning the outskirts of Alma al-Shaab and Naqoura, this hill is a dense forested area with strategic visibility over both Lebanese and occupied Palestinian territories;
al-Hammamiss Hill: Situated 1 km from the Blue Line near Khiam, it provides a vantage point over the Metula settlement from the north;
Blat Mountain: Located 1 km from the Blue Line between Ramiya and Marwahin, overseeing both the western and central sectors.
On the government front the ministerial statement was finalised, including financial and economic reform commitments centered on banking sector restructuring, ensuring deposit recovery, a new agreement with the International Monetary Fund, and administrative reforms starting with the establishment of an independent judiciary. Additionally, the statement affirms first-tier government appointments based on equal Muslim-Christian representation, without reserving any specific post for a particular sect.
However, the primary focus of discussion will be its approach to sovereignty and the resistance’s weapons. The statement asserts the state’s exclusive right to bear arms but also emphasises its responsibility to prevent aggression and liberate occupied territories. It outlines a military doctrine for an army that defends, liberates, and wages war, calling for its proper armament and empowerment. Furthermore, it proposes discussions on a comprehensive defense strategy spanning military, diplomatic, and economic dimensions. Meanwhile, President Joseph Aoun, speaking before the Lebanese Press Editors Syndicate, affirmed that the fate of the resistance’s weapons should be addressed through national dialogue among the Lebanese.
In an interview with Al-Mayadeen amid preparations for the funeral of former Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbollah’s Liaison and Coordination Unit Chief Wafiq Safa stated, “Hezbollah’s strength will return greater than before, and while our focus now shifts to internal affairs, the flame of the region has not yet been extinguished”.