here. The good news:
Siniora earlier expressed a new willingness to quickly deploy Lebanese troops in the south to bring a halt in the fighting.
Siniora has backed the idea of swiftly moving in Lebanese troops, with the support of beefed-up UN forces, in order to ensure that thousands of IDF soldiers leave the south with any cease-fire, an aide to the prime minister said.
A previous Lebanese peace proposal called for deploying the Lebanese army in the south, but only after a cease-fire was reached and a set of political demands was met – including a release of Lebanese prisoners in Israel and steps toward resolving Lebanon’s claims on a patch of border territory held by Israel for years.
But Siniora was backing a speeded-up deployment because the U.S.-French cease-fire plan – due to be voted on by the UN Security Council in the coming days – would leave IDF troops in south Lebanon after a halt in fighting…
The bad news:
Al-Aridi [Lebanon’s information minister] hinted that Lebanon was expecting positive reactions to its decision.
He also added that, following the deployment of the army in the south of the country, Hezbollah would remain in the area “as a party that represents an entire segment of the population.”
Al-Aridi stressed that the organization would remain a partner to decision-making in the country and that the deployment of the army was designed ‘to reap the fruits of Lebanon’s military achievement.”