Four people, including a soldier, were injured on Wednesday as a result of the explosion of a “suspicious object” in southern Lebanon, according to what the Lebanese army explained in a statement, after it had announced that the injuries resulted from an Israeli strike that targeted a military vehicle.
The army reported in a statement that “a soldier and three civilians were injured in the Nabatieh al-Fawqa area, as a result of an explosion while the army was accompanying residents to inspect their property in the area,” according to what was reported by Agence France-Presse.
He added, “As a result of investigations and engineering examination, it was found that the incident resulted from the explosion of a suspicious object,” after the army had spoken in a previous statement about “an Israeli hostile targeting of an army vehicle.”
Although a ceasefire has been in effect between Israel and Hezbollah since June 21, the area has been subjected to repeated Israeli raids.
Lebanon entered the war on March 2 after Hezbollah fired missiles at Israel, which it said were in response to the killing of Iranian guide Ali Khamenei in the first American and Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28.
Israel responded with an intense campaign of raids and a ground incursion by its forces, which occupied dozens of towns and villages in southern Lebanon, and widespread bombing operations.
The pace of violence declined after the United States and Iran concluded a memorandum of understanding in June, and the Lebanese and Israeli governments signed, under American sponsorship, a framework agreement that stipulated the disarmament of Hezbollah, the gradual withdrawal of the Hebrew state from the lands it occupies in southern Lebanon, and the deployment of the Lebanese army, starting from “experimental” areas.
Accordingly, the army deployed in July in the western town of Zawtar after the withdrawal of Israeli forces from its outskirts, and strengthened its deployment in the towns of Srifa and Faron. But no new areas were agreed upon.
Israel continues to launch attacks on southern Lebanon, and also carries out bombing and bombing operations in the towns it occupies. Hezbollah refused direct negotiations with Israel and surrendered its weapons, a position repeated by its Secretary-General Naim Qassem (Sunday).
Baghdad and Washington announced, on Wednesday, the end of the mission of the international coalition led by the United States to fight ISIS in Iraq, after the withdrawal of American forces from an air base in Erbil in the Kurdistan region.
A statement issued by the Pentagon said: “Today, the United States and its coalition partners officially concluded (Operation Inherent Resolve) in Iraq, in line with the US-Iraqi Joint Statement issued in September 2024 and US national interests.”
For his part, Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi announced on Wednesday the start of “a new phase entitled Iraqi sovereignty,” after the withdrawal of coalition forces, stressing that the end of the coalition’s mission does not mean the end of the battle against terrorism.
Al-Zaidi continued that security cooperation with the international coalition will be more effective, and will include digital technology to support security, announcing the transfer of joint operations tasks to the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.
The Iraqi Prime Minister stressed that “there are no weapons outside the umbrella of the law and state institutions.”
In addition, the spokesman for the Iraqi Ministry of Defense, Major General Yahya Rasoul, confirmed on Tuesday evening that Iraq will not witness the presence of any element from the international coalition after September 30, coinciding with the departure of American forces today (Wednesday) from their remaining bases in Iraq.
Rasoul said, according to the Iraqi News Agency (INA): “There will not be any element from the international coalition after September 30, and there is no soldier from the international coalition inside Iraq,” indicating that “the withdrawal of the international coalition is the result of a great effort made by Iraq.”
He added, "The Iraqis were the ones who liberated the land with the support of the international coalition, and bilateral relations with the international coalition countries are advanced," stressing that "there is no one above the rule of law." He pointed out that the Iraqi security and intelligence services have achieved great progress in confronting terrorism and corruption.
Regarding the Victoria Base, the spokesman for the Iraqi Ministry of Defense confirmed that “the Iraqi army will use the Victoria Base to secure the country’s skies and land,” explaining that “there are no international coalition aircraft at the Victoria Base.”
In a related context, the security advisor to the Iraqi Prime Minister, Qasim Al-Araji, confirmed today (Wednesday) that Iraq has reached an important milestone by ending the mission of the international coalition and the presence of its forces, in a way that consolidates sovereignty and serves the national interests and aspirations of the Iraqi people.
Al-Araji said, in a statement carried by the Iraqi News Agency (INA): “In continuation of the path of negotiations and understandings that began on July 22, 2021, today we reach an important milestone by ending the mission of the international coalition and the presence of its forces.” He added: “Victory over ISIS terrorist gangs was achieved through the sacrifices of Iraqis and the valor of our armed forces of all types and formations, with the support of the international coalition and brotherly and friendly countries, and it is a role that we appreciate and value.”
He continued: “The end of the coalition mission does not mean the end of the partnership, but rather a transition to more established bilateral relations, with continued security and intelligence cooperation, exchange of information and expertise, and capacity building, based on mutual respect and common interests, in a way that enhances security and stability and supports the aspirations of our people towards sustainable peace, development and prosperity.”
The withdrawal was approved during 2024 during the era of former US President Joe Biden, and is being implemented by the Donald Trump administration even as it wages war on Iran. The withdrawal comes 23 years after the US-led forces overthrew Saddam Hussein, which at that time sparked unrest and chaos that culminated in the emergence of ISIS. The Iranian Revolutionary Guard urged Americans to vote to expel Trump's allies from Congress, coinciding with the withdrawal of American forces from Iraq, the country in which Tehran has gradually consolidated its influence through its proxies since the fall of Saddam Hussein.
Although the withdrawal enjoys broad support among Iraqis, some worry that the security forces trained and funded by the United States are still unable to protect the country where 4,500 American troops were killed during a war that lasted more than 20 years, according to what Agence France-Presse reported.
American forces invaded Iraq in 2003, then proceeded to occupy the country, installing a government led by Shiite forces, and waging a years-long war against those opposed to it - first against those loyal to Saddam Hussein and then against Al-Qaeda - before withdrawing at the end of 2011.
Then, less than three years later, American forces returned to help Iraqi forces defeat ISIS in a major war that extended from 2014 to 2017.
“Operation Iraqi Freedom” claimed the lives of nearly twice the number of Americans killed in the simultaneous war in Afghanistan, which ended with a sudden American withdrawal in 2021. In this year’s war on Iran, seven of the 18 American soldiers declared killed during the conflict fell in Iraq, the last of whom was a soldier with the rank of “sergeant” who was killed during a controlled drone explosion at a base near Erbil in July.
Some Iraqi security officials, in the federal government and in the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region in the north of the country, say that the American withdrawal also entails the risk of giving ISIS fighters a new opportunity for activity, as they still maintain a network of sleeper cells. American forces were providing Iraqi security forces with crucial intelligence information about ISIS movements, in addition to aerial surveillance and reconnaissance operations.
