What did Hochstein discuss in Lebanon?
U.S. mediator Amos Hochstein presented to Lebanese officials a paper demanding the expansion of the 1701 zone to at least two kilometers north of the Litani River and a large increase in the numbers of UNIFIL peacekeepers and Lebanese troops, Arab diplomatic sources said.
Hochstein's paper also included allowing UNIFIL to search any point, vehicle, site or home suspected of containing weapons, and the right to carry out surprise patrols in any 1701 area without a permission from Lebanese authorities, the sources told al-Akhbar newspaper.
The paper also calls for expanding UNIFIL's maritime mission to involve Lebanese ports and any ships heading to them, deploying observation teams in all of the country's airports, and building watchtowers on Lebanon's border with Syria.
Lebanese officials meanwhile told Hochstein that the discussions "cannot tackle the resistance's arms outside Resolution 1701's current geographical scope" and that Lebanon rejects the deployment of any foreign forces on the border with Syria, the sources added.
Lebanese sources that took part in the meetings meanwhile told Asharq al-Awsat newspaper that Hochstein "received a positive response" from Lebanon, and that he will hold talks in Tel Aviv in the weekend.
"Hochstein did not carry any Israeli conditions for a ceasefire and he at least did not propose any of the reported conditions as to Israel's demand to have freedom of movement in Lebanon's territory and airspace in the future," the sources added.
The U.S. envoy "launched a track that would be concluded with the literal implementation of Resolution 1701 instead of amending it, in addition to a permanent ceasefire," the sources said.
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