Mikati Calls for Reinforcing the Presence of Lebanese Armed Forces in South Lebanon

US envoy Amos Hochstein will be visiting Lebanon soon, and the vague files should be addressed face-to-face, Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said on Monday.

“Lebanon’s response to the US paper was positive, but some points require discussion,” he told Al-Araby TV.

“We hope to reach a ceasefire in Lebanon in the nearest time,” he said.

“The key mater for us in the American proposal is the implementation of UNSC Resolution 1701; Lebanon is committed to its implementation, and our goal is its implementation in south of Litani,” he stressed, emphasizing the necessity of restoring stability and ending carnage and destruction in south Lebanon.

“Speaker Nabih Berri is leading the negotiations with the US mediator; I am in constant touch with him, and I haven’t heard about any condition relevant to Israel’s operational freedom in Lebanon,” he went on saying.

“What matters to me is to reinforce the presence of the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) in south Lebanon,” he said, adding that there should only be “legitimate” weapons.

Mikati also stressed that “the Israeli enemy must draw back from any move it has taken inside the Lebanese territory.”