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On Friday, Lebanon and Israel signed a framework agreement at the White House after months of direct negotiations coordinated by the Trump administration. Lebanese human rights experts and critics have condemned the agreement, saying that it does not mark a step forward for Lebanon, but rather, is a capitulation that continues Israel’s invasion and threatens to further endanger the country.

In remarks at a press conference Saturday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the U.S.-brokered framework agreement a “historic milestone.” He celebrated the separation of Israel’s war on Lebanon from negotiations with Iran, saying, “Lebanon, Israel, and the U.S. are essentially saying to Iran: This is none of your business. You have no status here. You have no involvement and no role, not you, not Hezbollah, and not any terrorist organization.”

Netanyahu has faced backlash within Israel after the U.S. excluded him from negotiations with Iran, and has followed it with bluster and threats against Iran, Lebanon, Syria, and Gaza.

The framework agreement between the U.S., Israel, and Lebanon calls for the “disarmament of non-state armed groups” and dismantling of their infrastructure – referring to Hezbollah, and any other group engaging in armed resistance against Israel from within Lebanon. It calls for the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) to “restore effective sovereign authority over all Lebanese territory.”

But the Lebanese Army was created as an internal security force, and not one that could defend the country from Israel. Of course, this works well with Israel’s goals for Lebanon, as it pushes for the replacement of Hezbollah, a force that is capable of resisting Israel’s occupation, with one that is not.

Despite Ceasefire, Israel Continues to Expand Occupation of Southern Lebanon

The LAF, the framework states, will then “gradually” assume control of so-called “pilot zones,” which will then lead to phased withdrawal of the Israeli army. But even this framing legitimizes Israel’s current occupation........

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