During the first five days, Israeli forces would pull out from the western sector, spanning from Ras al-Naqoura to Rmeish. The next five days would see a withdrawal from the central sector, covering Rmeish to Mays al-Jabal.

According to the report in Lebanese media, Israel has received approval from US officials to remain in key parts of southern Lebanon to prevent the re-establishment of Hezbollah

Outgoing and incoming US administration officials rush to ease conflict in Lebanon as its parliament holds presidential vote this week

It is the second such pullout since a Nov 27 ceasefire, and came after United Nations peacekeepers and Lebanon’s prime minister late last month called on the Israeli army to speed up its withdrawal from Lebanon’s south.

Lebanon is geared to select a new president this week as the army has made significant strides in taking over for IDF troops deployed in southern Lebanon

The Biden administration in its final days is shifting more than $100 million in military aid from Israel and Egypt to Lebanon as it tries to bolster a ceasefire agreement it helped mediate between Israel and Hezbollah.

Israel and Hezbollah agreed to pull their forces out of southern Lebanon before the end of January. The area will then be secured by the Lebanese army and UN peacekeepers, as part of the agreed conditions of the ceasefire.

An Israeli official told The Post that plans for the withdrawal of the IDF “don’t change the fact that after the ceasefire terminates, Israeli forces will need to remain in southern Lebanon.”

General Joseph Aoun was widely seen as the preferred candidate of the United States, which funds, trains, and arms the Lebanese military and helped broker a cease-fire between Israel and the militant group Hezbollah in November.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a discussion on Thursday to evaluate the Israeli military’s preparedness for the possibility of a third attack on Iran. Also on the agenda: a more aggressive U.S. policy expected from the incoming Trump administration regarding Iran.

The Biden administration and President-elect Trump's team closely coordinated to push for Gen. Joseph Aoun to be elected as the new president of Lebanon, a U.S. official and a source familiar with the issue told Axios.