Lebanese president demands full Israeli withdrawal from occupied territories

By Naim Burjawi

BEIRUT (AA) - Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on Friday reaffirmed his country's insistence on Israel’s full withdrawal from all Lebanese territories, according to a statement.

It came during Aoun's meeting with the leader of the Greek Cypriot Administration, Nikos Christodoulides, at the Presidential Baabda Palace in eastern Beirut, said the Lebanese Presidency.

As both leaders discussed the situation in southern Lebanon, Aoun "reaffirmed Lebanon's insistence on the complete withdrawal of the Israeli enemy from its remaining occupied territories and the deployment of the Lebanese army along the southern border."

Under a cease-fire signed Nov. 27, Israel is required to withdraw its forces south of the Blue Line -- a de facto border -- in phases, while the Lebanese army is to deploy in southern Lebanon within the pact's 60-day timeframe.

Aoun, who had been the army's chief since 2017, was elected Thursday as president by the parliament, ending more than two years of political deadlock in Lebanon.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar