Watch: Trump meets with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun in the Oval Office

BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon’s president will meet with President Donald Trump on Tuesday to conclude a four-day visit to Washington, seeking long-term calm after months of war at home between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah group.

Watch their meeting in the video player above.

Joseph Aoun’s first meeting with Trump comes at a time when Lebanon and Israel are holding rare direct talks mediated by Washington. This is the first visit by a Lebanese president to the White House since 2009.

Lebanon hopes that the talks will result in the withdrawal of Israeli forces from large areas of southern Lebanon that they currently occupy, and that the Lebanese army will receive support to assert full control over the areas previously controlled by Hezbollah fighters.

Lebanon and Israel announced a “framework agreement” on June 26, outlining a plan for the withdrawal of Israeli forces and the disarmament of Hezbollah, which has had a strong presence for decades in southern Lebanon. It also outlines steps toward a final peace agreement between the two countries, which have never established formal diplomatic relations and have been nominally at war for nearly 80 years after the creation of Israel.

The US State Department announced on Monday that operations in three villages considered part of an “experimental area” had begun, without providing details. Two villages, Faron and Srifa, are not subject to Israeli military control and the Lebanese army is present, while Israeli forces are present in part of Zawtar al-Gharbiya.

The Lebanese army said in a statement that it is preparing for the Israeli withdrawal from Zawtar al-Gharbiya and that it began deploying forces on Tuesday. The Israeli army said that it “will adjust the position of its forces in one of the experimental areas to enable the Lebanese Armed Forces to carry out their mission,” without specifying the location.

The Lebanese army later said that Israeli forces had opened fire near that area in Zawtar al-Gharbiya, without providing details, and warned that it might delay the deployment.

An Israeli military official, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with military guidelines, said the withdrawal had not yet begun.

The village mayor is waiting for safety confirmation

Abdel Ezz El-Din, the mayor of Zawtar Gharbia, said they are waiting for the Lebanese army to say whether it is safe for residents to inspect their homes after they are fully deployed and patrolling the area. He expressed concern about safety, given that the Israeli army is still present in a nearby village, while Israeli strikes continue nearby.

“The villages are intertwined, so we do not feel safe because the Israelis are there, and they are on our borders and not far from us,” Ezz El-Din told the Associated Press. He added that Western Zawtar is uninhabitable.

He added: “Once the army allows us to enter Zawtar Gharbiya, we will enter as civilians, but only to check the matter and see how things are going, and then we will leave.” He added, “We cannot stay because the infrastructure has been completely destroyed and the homes have been leveled. They (the Israelis) have bulldozed the roads.”

Last week, the Lebanese Army increased its presence in some areas expected to be included in the pilot zone, including the three villages, where forces conducted patrols and set up checkpoints.

Rubio says the United States will support the framework agreement

On Sunday, Aoun met with Foreign Minister Marco Rubio, who said that Washington will continue to support the Lebanese agreement and support its full implementation. Rubio described the meeting as “very positive” and warned that Lebanon “will never enjoy complete peace” as long as the Hezbollah issue is not resolved.

Rubio said: “How can Hezbollah be replaced? Defeat it and replace it with a government strong enough to be the only armed force in the country.”

Skeptics in Lebanon fear that a military confrontation with Hezbollah could lead to civil war.

He urged government officials to invest in the country’s damaged infrastructure to empower the weak state, something Rubio echoed.

He added: “It’s not just about military matters.” “It’s about how to attract more American and international investment to Lebanon.”

Israel plans a long-term presence

Meanwhile, Israeli officials said they intend to keep military forces for an extended period in a “security zone” in southern Lebanon.

Hezbollah has rejected direct US-brokered talks, instead supporting Washington talks with its main ally and sponsor Iran to end their war, which includes ending the war in Lebanon as a condition.

The Lebanese government came to power with a reform program in early 2025, pledging to disarm all non-state groups including Hezbollah. It blames Hezbollah for dragging the country into another war with Israel in March, when the militant group fired several rockets toward northern Israel two days after the United States and Israel attacked Iran.

However, Beirut’s leadership condemned the subsequent Israeli ground invasion and large-scale air campaign in the country, which resulted in the deaths of more than 4,000 people and the displacement of 1.2 million others.

While the Lebanese leadership grapples with intense political opposition from Hezbollah and its allies within the deeply divided country, it insists that an Israeli withdrawal and international financial support for the cash-strapped Lebanese army are critical to reaching a sustainable security solution.

Associated Press writer Giovanna Dell’Orto in Jerusalem contributed.