The two-day meeting follows the framework agreement signed in Washington on June 26, which provides for the establishment of an initial “pilot zone” where Israeli forces would gradually withdraw and the Lebanese Armed Forces would assume responsibility under a U.S.-monitored coordination mechanism.

Lebanon’s delegation will be led by Ambassador to Washington Nada Moawad and include former ambassador Simon Karam and Brig. Gen. Ziad Haykal, who is participating as an adviser to President Joseph Aoun.

A source close to the negotiations said the Lebanese delegation would not present new conditions during the Rome talks and would instead prioritize reinforcing the ceasefire and advancing implementation of the agreement.

According to the source, questions related to the practical launch of the pilot zones will be addressed separately in Beirut because no Lebanese military delegation is participating in the Rome negotiations. The U.S. State Department is expected to closely monitor the talks, and discussions could return to Washington if significant disagreements emerge.

Lebanon’s negotiating team will seek commitments on an Israeli military withdrawal from agreed areas, the deployment of the Lebanese Army throughout southern Lebanon and the start of reconstruction efforts, according to official information cited in the report.

In Beirut, a military source said senior Lebanese army officers have been holding coordination meetings with a U.S. military delegation that arrived in the capital several days ago following consultations with Israeli military officials.

The discussions are focused on operational arrangements needed to establish the first pilot zone. The source said U.S. officials broadly understood Lebanon’s position and were pressing Israel to fulfill its commitments under the framework agreement.

The negotiations take place ahead of a scheduled July 21 meeting in Washington between U.S. President Donald Trump and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun.

The military source declined to identify which area would become the first pilot zone or provide a timetable for Israeli withdrawal and Lebanese Army deployment. The source maintained that Israel should first withdraw from occupied areas before Lebanese forces assume control.

Under the framework agreement, U.S. Central Command is responsible for coordinating implementation between Lebanon and Israel and overseeing the phased deployment process on the ground.

Areas identified as potential pilot zones include Zawtar Sharqieh, Zawtar El-Gharbiye, Yohmor, the area surrounding Beaufort Castle, Froun and Al-Ghandouriyah.

The agreement, announced following the fourth round of negotiations in Washington, calls for the rapid establishment of pilot zones in southern Lebanon where the Lebanese Armed Forces would exercise full authority and non-state armed groups would be barred from operating.

The proposal has generated domestic criticism in Lebanon because it does not specify implementation procedures, coordination mechanisms, geographical boundaries or a timetable for Israeli withdrawal. Critics have argued that the arrangement could leave the Lebanese Army operating under externally determined security requirements and potentially place it in confrontation with local communities during enforcement operations.

Meanwhile, Israeli forces continued military activity in southern Lebanon on Monday. According to the municipality of Bint Jbeil, Israeli forces set fire to homes in the occupied border town of Haddatha while carrying out what local authorities described as extensive demolition and land-clearing operations using heavy machinery.

Separately, Israeli news website Walla, citing a security official, reported that Israeli forces could begin a gradual withdrawal from agreed pilot zones within approximately three weeks in exchange for the deployment of the Lebanese Army and efforts to remove military infrastructure and armed elements from those areas.