Lebanon Speaker Ties Hezbollah Withdrawal to Israeli Exit

Lebanon's parliament speaker Nabih Berri, an ally of Hezbollah, said on Friday he would support the Iran-backed group's withdrawal from southern Lebanon if Israeli forces simultaneously vacated the territory they occupy in the country.

In written comments distributed by his office, Berri criticized the US-brokered ceasefire framework announced this week as unfair, saying it was supposed to include "an unconditional ceasefire by land, sea and air".

He added that he "agrees to... Hezbollah's withdrawal from south of the Litani River, in parallel with the Israeli withdrawal from the areas it occupied".

(reuters, max)