Haykal to meet in France with US, French and Saudi officials

Over the past weeks, the U.S. has increased pressure on Lebanon to work harder on disarming Hezbollah and canceled a planned trip to Washington last month by Army chief Gen. Rodolph Haykal.

U.S. officials were angered in November by a Lebanese army statement that blamed Israel for destabilizing Lebanon and blocking the Lebanese military deployment in south Lebanon.

A senior Lebanese army official told The Associated Press Monday that Haikal will fly to France this week where he will attend a meeting with U.S., French and Saudi officials to discuss ways of assisting the army in its mission. The officer spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to speak publicly.

The Lebanese army has been severely affected by the economic meltdown that broke out in Lebanon in October 2019.

The Lebanese army gave several ambassadors and foreign military officials a tour on Monday meant to demonstrate its efforts to disarm Hezbollah, as Beirut contends with fears of expanded Israeli strikes and mounting diplomatic pressure to show results.

Lebanon has committed to disarming Hezbollah, and the army has set a goal of dismantling the group's military infrastructure south of the Litani River -- around 30 kilometers north of Israel -- by year's end before tackling the rest of the country.

In a statement, the military said it "organized a field tour for a number of ambassadors, charges d'affaires, and military attaches to learn about the implementation of the first phase of the army's plan in the south of the Litani sector".

Army chief Rodolphe Haykal said the tour was intended to highlight the army's commitment to the efforts in spite of its "limited capabilities".