The agreement largely tracks UN Security Council resolution 1701, which ended the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah.
Under resolution 1701, areas south of the Litani should be free of any armed personnel or weapons other than those of the Lebanese state and the UN peacekeeping force (Unifil).
But both sides claimed violations of the resolution.
Israel says Hezbollah was allowed to build extensive infrastructure in the area, while Lebanon says Israel’s violations included military flights over its territory.
This time, the US and France will join the existing tripartite mechanism, which involves Unifil, Lebanon and Israel, which will be charged with monitoring violations, the senior US official said.
“There will be no US combat troops in the area, but there will be military support for the Lebanese Armed Forces, as we’ve done in the past. But in this case, it’ll be typically done with the Lebanese army and in conjunction with the French military as well,” the official said.
Alluding to Israeli concerns, Biden said: “Hezbollah terrorist infrastructure in southern Lebanon will not be allowed to be rebuilt.”