Israel’s military said it would maintain a presence in five strategic locations along its border with Lebanon past a deadline to remove troops as part of a cease-fire deal with Hezbollah, garnering pushback from Beirut.

Israel will keep troops in several posts in southern Lebanon past a February 18 deadline for them to withdraw, a military spokesperson said on Monday, as Israeli leaders sought to reassure northern residents that they can return home safely.

IDF units will remain ‘temporarily deployed’ on Lebanese ridges overlooking Israeli border villages beyond Feb 18 ceasefire deadline

Israel said on Monday its forces will remain in five strategic points inside Lebanon after Tuesday's deadline for their full withdrawal, an Israel Defence Forces spokesman has said. Lebanon's

The Israeli military said its forces will remain at five "strategic points" inside Lebanon beyond Tuesday, when the deadline for troop withdrawal from the neighbouring country under a fragile ceasefire expires.

Under the deal, Lebanon's military was to deploy in the south alongside United Nations peacekeepers as the Israeli army withdrew over a 60-day period that was later extended to Feb. 18.

Israel has requested to keep its troops in five posts in southern Lebanon until February 28, a Lebanese official and foreign diplomat told Reuters on Wednesday.

Under a truce brokered by Washington in November, Israeli troops were granted 60 days to withdraw from southern Lebanon where they had waged a ground offensive against fighters from Iran-backed Hezbollah since early October.

The post Israel planning to pull out of Lebanon tomorrow, Israeli official says appeared first on The Times of Israel.

Hezbollah said on Sunday that Israeli troops must withdraw from Lebanese territory in full by a February 18 deadline, saying it had "no pretext" to maintain a military presence in any post in southern Lebanon.