US general meets Berri as French general meets Mikati
The co-chair of the ceasefire monitoring mechanism, U.S. Maj. Gen. Jasper Jeffers, held talks Thursday with Speaker Nabih Berri.
Jeffers was accompanied by a U.S. military delegation and U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Lisa Johnson.
Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati meanwhile met with the head of the French military delegation who will be part of the ceasefire monitoring committee, General Guillaume Ponchin.
During the meeting, Mikati said “the priorities of the Lebanese stance are the ceasefire, the Israeli violations, the withdrawal of the Israeli army from Lebanese territory, and reinforcing the deployment of the Lebanese Army in the South.”
A French statement said Ponchin will be supported by around ten military and civilian personnel from the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of the Armed Forces.
“In close collaboration with the Lebanese Armed Forces, the Israeli Defense Forces (Israeli army) and the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), the monitoring mechanism will monitor the implementation of the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon. It will also work with the Military Technical Committee for Support to Lebanon to contribute to the Lebanese Armed Forces’ build-up and deployment in southern Lebanon, for which France reaffirms its support, as part of the implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701,” the statement added.
Source: Naharnet
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