The Lebanese army began deploying in the southern village of Zawtar al-Gharbiya on Tuesday, hours after President Joseph Aoun concluded talks with US President Donald Trump in Washington. The move activates the first of several “pilot zones” foreseen in the framework agreement between Lebanon and Israel, under which Israeli forces are to withdraw in phases while the Lebanese army assumes exclusive security control and prevents any armed presence outside state institutions. The deployment, however, was immediately marred by tension: the Lebanese army said Israeli troops opened fire near its units, while the Israeli military described the incident as warning shots after soldiers entered an area it considered outside the agreed zone.

Viewed from Washington, the sequence of the summit and the deployment signals an attempt to lock in a process that ties Israeli withdrawal to the disarmament of Hezbollah. During the Oval Office meeting, Trump stated that disarming the group was achievable if linked to ending Israeli occupation, full Lebanese army control, and a state-led reconstruction programme. He also expressed readiness to engage with Hezbollah if channelled through President Aoun and state institutions, a message that, according to Lebanese political sources, was directed at the Shiite duo of Hezbollah and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri. Berri, who received a direct compliment from Trump during the press appearance, is described by analysts in Beirut as a pivotal figure whose cooperation Washington considers essential for the framework’s implementation.

In parallel, the Lebanese government moved to consolidate the political narrative. Prime Minister Nawaf Salam visited Zawtar al-Gharbiya to plant the national flag and pledged to mobilise all diplomatic efforts for a “full Israeli withdrawal.” His presence, alongside the defence minister and army chief of staff, was intended to project restored state authority. Yet Hezbollah and its allies have publicly rejected the framework agreement, with affiliated media and officials criticising the Aoun-Trump meeting and the pilot-zone mechanism. A senior source within the Shiite duo, cited by Lebanese dailies, said the alliance would not be drawn into Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s electoral calculations and was monitoring developments calmly, noting that a US-Iran memorandum of understanding with a 60-day timeline remained on the table.

Regional dynamics are shaping the dossier. Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman spoke with Aoun before his departure, a gesture read in Arab diplomatic circles as Riyadh’s endorsement of Lebanon’s reorientation away from the Iranian orbit. Meanwhile, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani announced that Rome would host a new round of direct Lebanon-Israel talks on 4 August, with US mediation. On the ground, Israeli forces continued incursions and raised their flag over the historic Dubieh castle near Shaqra, an act Lebanon’s culture minister called a “hostile, provocative act.” The state of the dossier remains fragile: the pilot zone is a limited test, and the next diplomatic milestone is the Rome meeting, while a reported visit by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to Beirut could further press the Lebanese leadership to align behind the framework.