News Desk

WASHINGTON: The Lebanese army began taking charge of security in three southern villages Monday, the US said, as a deal to secure an Israeli withdrawal from south Lebanon and the disarmament of Hezbollah faced its first test on the ground.

The US State Department said operations had started in “pilot zones” in Froun, Srifa and Zawtar Al-Gharbiya “in accordance with the Trilateral Framework and under the auspices of the Military Coordination Group for Lebanon.”

State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott described the step as “a direct outcome” of talks held between Israeli and Lebanese delegations in Rome last week, adding that Washington would keep working with both sides “to implement the framework to a successful conclusion.”

The framework, signed by Lebanon, Israel and the United States on June 26 after several rounds of direct negotiations, envisions a phased Israeli pullback from positions in south Lebanon.

In exchange, the Lebanese Armed Forces are to assume sole security control of vacated areas and certify that they have been cleared of Hezbollah weapons and infrastructure.

The pilot zones are intended to trial the approach in a handful of villages straddling the Litani River before it is extended to other areas.

Hezbollah has rejected the framework, with the Iran-backed group insisting any arrangement in Lebanon be linked to wider negotiations between Washington and Tehran. It has not said whether it will resist implementation in the designated areas.

Indian police baton-charge protesters

News Desk

NEW DELHI: India’s riot police baton-charged protesters in New Delhi as they tried to march to parliament on Monday, escalating a protest over irregularities in major examinations.

Protesters ran for cover as police in blue riot gear charged at them near the Jantar Mantar protest site, an AFP journalist saw.

Thousands of protesters started gathering from early Monday, defying a steady monsoon drizzle and police barricades put up on routes leading to the site.

The protesters are demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the irregularities, including question paper leaks and technical glitches.

“We want the government to hear us, not silence us,” said student K.M. Gulshan, 19.

The protest comes after prominent activist Sonam Wangchuk was taken to hospital on Saturday, bringing an abrupt end to his 20-day hunger strike in support of youths and the satirical Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) movement.

The CJP has won millions of followers on social media since its launch in May, tapping into widespread anger over the education system and unemployment.

The movement is seen as one of the biggest challenges to Hindu-nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi since he won his third term in office in 2024.

“PM @narendramodi tell your police to stand down,” the CJP said in a post on X on Monday.

“We are a democracy in case you have forgotten. The whole world is watching as you’re trying to crush a democratic and peaceful protest.”