As IDF pulls out of Lebanon, DM Katz warns: Enforcement against Hezbollah will continue ‘at full strength’

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) largely completed their withdrawal from southern Lebanon overnight, except for five strategic points which Defense Minister Israel Katz called a “buffer zone” meant to “ensure the protection of the northern communities.”

The deadline for the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Lebanon expired on Tuesday.

The evening before, a “senior political official” briefed Israeli media outlets that Israel “will remain in Lebanon at five control points until the understandings are fully implemented by Lebanon. We will continue to firmly enforce the ceasefire in Lebanon.”

Katz reiterated in a statement on Tuesday: “The IDF’s enforcement activities against Hezbollah will continue at full strength. We will not allow a return to the reality of October 7.”

The IDF on Monday, for the first time, confirmed previous reports that it would not withdraw completely. IDF International Spokesman Lt.-Col. Nadav Shoshani stated that the military would need to maintain the five outposts “to protect Israeli citizens, ensure an orderly process, and transfer control to the Lebanese Army.”

“A stay of several months may be necessary,” Shoshani added, until Israel can be sure “there is no more Hezbollah activity south of the Litani.”

Lebanese media reported that the IDF vacated around 10 villages and towns in southern Lebanon overnight.

Later in the day, in talks with the U.S. and France, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said his government continues to demand a full Israeli withdrawal.

Talking to the Lebanese Press Club, Aoun said, "The Lebanese decision is unified in adopting the diplomatic option to achieve a complete Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon. No one wants war, least of all the state."

Meanwhile, the Lebanese army (LAF), which is to take over the vacated areas under the terms of the agreement, confirmed that its troops moved into several towns and began “conducting engineering surveys, opening roads, and dealing with unexploded ordnance and suspicious objects.”

بتاريخَي ١٧و١٨ /٢ /٢٠٢٥، انتشرت وحدات عسكرية في البلدات التالية:
•    العباسية، المجيدية، كفركلا – مرجعيون في القطاع الشرقي.
•    العديسة، مركبا، حولا، ميس الجبل، بليدا، محيبيب – مرجعيون في القطاع الأوسط.
•    مارون الراس والجزء المتبقي من يارون – بنت جبيل في القطاع الأوسط.… pic.twitter.com/U8pX4Odhxg

— الجيش اللبناني (@LebarmyOfficial) February 18, 2025

The LAF added that citizens should “adhere to the directives of the military units deployed in the southern regions, to allow for the completion of the aforementioned work.”

Local authorities also called on displaced residents not to rush back into the towns. However, thousands disobeyed the instructions and many shared footage of the destruction left behind by IDF troops in their villages.

Over the past few days, there were many reports of the IDF completing the detonation of buildings and infrastructure used by Hezbollah to observe or fire on Israeli towns just over the border.

In addition, Army Radio reported that a suspicious person approached the border fence near Meiss al-Jabal, opposite the Israeli community of Manara. According to Lebanese reports, IDF troops opened fire, and two people were wounded in the incident.

The Israeli withdrawal comes after the U.S. – at least officially – opposed a second extension of the withdrawal deadline. However, the Trump administration seems to have quietly approved the IDF keeping the five strategic outposts.

On Friday, U.S. Gen. Jasper Jeffers, who heads the ceasefire monitoring committee, said he was “confident” the LAF would control all the “population centers” in southern Lebanon, according to L’Orient LeJour.

Meanwhile, the Lebanese al-Liwaa newspaper reported that the Trump administration is pressuring the Lebanese government not just to deploy in southern Lebanon and ensure Hezbollah withdraws from the area, but also to disarm all other militias in the country, including Hezbollah and Palestinian terror groups.

The report added that the U.S. is threatening to demand the UN Security Council send international forces to Lebanon to implement UN resolutions 1701 and 1559 if the government fails to disarm the militias.