President Joseph Aoun on Friday emphasized “the priority of the return of the border villages’ residents to their villages, homes and land as a gateway for discussing all the other details” with Israel, after the U.S.-led Mechanism committee held a second meeting in the presence of Lebanese and Israeli civilian officials.

Civilian and military representatives from Lebanon and Israel met on Friday as part of the 'Mechanism' committee monitoring implementation of the year-long Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire, the U.S. Embassy in Beirut said, noting that the "security and economic tracks" advanced "in parallel" in the talks.

It was the second time civilian representatives from Lebanon and Israel have taken part in a committee meeting, which also includes the United States, France and the United Nations.

The move by the United States to lift sweeping sanctions on Syria could encourage more refugees to return to their country and also help encourage investments, the head of the U.N. refugee agency in Lebanon said.

Israel's military said Friday a man seized last year in Lebanon's Batroun was a Hezbollah operative who played a key role in planning a covert maritime force for the militant group.

The Israeli army said special unit troops apprehended Imad Amhaz in November 2024 from the north Lebanese city of Batroun, and transferred him to Israel.

Lebanese Army chief General Rodolphe Haykal agreed to document the army's progress in disarming Hezbollah during talks Thursday with international envoys in Paris, the French foreign ministry said, as Beirut seeks to forestall expanded Israeli attacks.

Israel and Hezbollah clashed for more than a year after the outbreak of the Gaza war in October 2023, and a November 2024 ceasefire was meant to put an end to the hostilities, but Israel has kept up its strikes, accusing the group of rearming.

The U.S. is optimistic over the Mechanism meeting that will be held on Friday and will push for a “serious and fruitful dialogue” between Lebanon and Israel, diplomats told the Nidaa al-Watan newspaper.

Several regional diplomatic sources meanwhile agreed, in remarks to the same daily, that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu does not seem to be in favor of going to an all-out war after the holidays, “not only for military reasons, but rather because the war option has become invalid for electoral exploitation as the date of the Israeli legislative elections expected in October nears.”

Israel has informed Washington that it has “no deadline for using force in Lebanon,” sources told Al-Arabiya’s Al-Hadath channel.

“Iran is succeeding in smuggling arms and funds to Hezbollah,” a U.S. official told the channel.

The head of the U.N. refugee agency in Lebanon said Thursday that the move by the United States to lift sweeping sanctions on Syria could encourage more refugees to return to their country.

The U.S. Senate voted Wednesday to permanently remove the so-called Caesar Act sanctions after the administration of President Donald Trump previously temporarily lifted the penalties by executive order. The vote came as part of the passage of the country's annual defense spending bill. Trump is expected to sign off on the final repeal Thursday.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar has argued that Israeli strikes against Hezbollah do not violate Lebanon’s sovereignty, noting instead that the Iran-backed group is the party undermining the country’s sovereignty.

In an interview with Al-Arabiya English, Saar said Israel has only “minor” disputes with Lebanon that could be easily resolved, adding that the real problems stem from Hezbollah and Iran.

Army Commander General Rodolphe Haykal met Thursday in Paris with French army chief Fabien Mandon ahead of a key meeting with U.S., French and Saudi officials to discuss ways of assisting the army in its mission to boost its presence in the border area.