Pilot zone operations begin in Lebanon under U.S.-brokered framework

Pilot-zone operations began Monday in three villages in southern Lebanon under a U.S.-brokered framework among the United States, Israel and Lebanon, the State Department said.

The operations began in Froun, Srifa and Zawtar Al-Gharbiya under the supervision of the Military Coordination Group for Lebanon, which was established to help implement the framework. The State Department called the launch "a direct outcome of last week's discussions between Israel and Lebanon in Rome."

Under the broader agreement, the Lebanese army is to take control of designated areas as militant groups are disarmed and Israeli forces gradually withdraw. The initial operations are intended to test the arrangement before it is expanded to other parts of southern Lebanon.