Authored by Dave DeCamp via AntiWar.com,
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Wednesday that the US hasn't asked Israel to withdraw its troops from southern Lebanon despite Iran maintaining that a withdrawal is necessary to implement the US-Iran Memorandum of Understanding, which calls for an end to Israel's war.
"We have announced that in any case we are not withdrawing and, as of this moment – and this is a diplomatic achievement – there is no American demand for Israel to withdraw from Lebanon," Katz said.
Pool/APThe Israeli minister vowed that Israel would stay in Lebanon "even if there is an American demand" and that Lebanese civilians would not be able to return to the IDF-occupied areas.
"There will be no civilians and no terrorists. Why? Because what happened in the past in security zones where there was also a civilian population was that there were explosives and attacks against soldiers, and therefore, we do not allow that," Katz said, according to Haaretz.
"Soldiers in, residents out. The infrastructure is destroyed, the houses are dangerous and ruined. We are not withdrawing," he added.
Also on Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he wouldn’t withdraw from Lebanon as long as he remains in power, which could be just a few more months, as Israel is set to hold elections in October, or potentially even earlier.
"As long as I am prime minister, we will maintain the security zone in southern Lebanon," Netanyahu said. "We will be the first in the world to solve the explosive drones problem."
While both President Trump and Vice President Vance have criticized some of Israel’s conduct in Lebanon, neither has publicly called for an Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon, and there’s no sign the administration is considering cutting off military aid to either pressure Israel to end the war or leave Israel on its own.
While Israeli attacks in Lebanon have subsided since the weekend, they haven’t stopped, and at least three people were killed by IDF strikes on Wednesday.
BREAKING: Israeli forces have withdrawn from part of its buffer zone in southern Lebanon as an act of "good faith" towards Lebanon's government, a U.S. state department official says, according to Reuters.
The official said that the Lebanese Armed Forces will now move into the…
Lebanese and Israeli officials held talks in Washington on Tuesday, and before the negotiations, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said that Beirut would accept "nothing less than an end to the Israeli occupation."
According to Al Monitor, the two sides are discussing a potential US-backed proposal for the IDF to hand over some territory to the Lebanese military, and that the US would "vet" the soldiers for ties to Hezbollah, though the plan would allow Israel to stay in parts of Lebanon near the border in what’s being called a "buffer zone."
Tyler Durden Fri, 06/26/2026 - 17:40A serious airspace breach occurred in Beijing's Central Business District earlier Friday, when a Sunward SA60L Aurora light aircraft crashed into the 1,700-foot-tall CITIC Tower.
The incident is a major wake-up call for Beijing's airspace defenses, not only in the financial district but also around CITIC Group, one of China's major state-owned financial and investment conglomerates.
The crash has already sparked speculation among some observers that there may be a lot more to the story.
A single-engine Sunward SA-60L Aurora aircraft with registration B-12PP, flown by a lone pilot struck the CITIC tower in Beijing, reportedly around the mid-levels, around 65th floor area today.
The aircraft was completely damaged on impact, also made a visible hole in the glass… pic.twitter.com/ffgTdTffmE
X user Guo Shen reported that the Sunward SA60L Aurora light aircraft departed from Shifosi Airport in eastern Beijing and was expected to return for an approach to Runway 18 before turning westbound toward the Guomao Central Business District. It then struck the 528-meter CITIC Tower.
Shen said the plane was an ultralight aircraft - not a high-speed military - making the incident less about kinetic capability and more about airspace control. The failure to prevent a low-and-slow altitude aircraft exposes massive security failures by Beijing.
She explained further:
He continued:
They're NOT showing you the operational question underneath it — that the world's most surveilled, most controlled, most restricted urban airspace just failed to stop a two-seater training plane from reaching the upper floors of a landmark skyscraper in the middle of the afternoon.
You don't build the most extensive airspace restriction system in the world and then explain a 270° constant heading into the CBD as a navigation malfunction. You don't evacuate 109 floors and cordon the Guomao district and release zero official statements unless the answer to "how did this happen" is one you are not ready to give.
Process that.
The plane that just hit Beijing's tallest building wasn't a missile.
It was a two-seater training aircraft.
And nobody is talking about what that actually means.
🚨 🚨 🚨 A SUNWARD SA60L "AURORA" LIGHT SPORT PLANE JUST PUNCHED A HOLE INTO CITIC TOWER — 109 STORIES UP — IN THE… pic.twitter.com/LlzKZYGbOF
X user Flight Emergency posted what appears to be the Sunward SA60L Aurora's flight path, showing the aircraft maintaining a steady track with no obvious attempt to turn back before impact.
The flight path raises the question: was this simply a general-aviation mishap, or was the aircraft being flown, or commanded, with a specific target in mind?
A Sunward SA60L Aurora (registration B-12PP) was involved in a fatal crash after striking Beijing's CITIC Tower today, June 26, 2026. @AirNavRadar
AirNav Radar ADS-B data shows the aircraft's last available transmissions ending before the impact, with no further position… pic.twitter.com/483bY6GTje
If Beijing cannot defend skyscrapers in its financial district from a light-sport aircraft moving at speeds comparable to a Shahed-style drone, then the question becomes unavoidable: was this merely an aviation failure, or was someone sending a message to the CCP?
Tyler Durden Fri, 06/26/2026 - 17:20