Israel pulls bulk of troops out of Lebanon.

(From AFX Europe (Focus))

AVIVIM, Israel (AFX) - Israel withdrew the bulk of its troops from south Lebanon Sunday, drawing cheers from Lebanese villagers but a warning from the Israeli military it will strike again if Hezbollah militants regroup.

The several hundred Israeli soldiers who had remained in south Lebanon following the Aug 14 UN-brokered ceasefire crossed back into Israel along with tanks, armored personnel carriers and bulldozers in darkness early in the morning, correspondents reported.

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) confirmed the pullout after conducting patrols in the area but said Israeli troops remained in the Ghajar border zone in the east.

"The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have withdrawn their troops from south Lebanon today, except from the general area of Ghajar north of the Blue Line (borders) which is still under IDF control," a UN statement said.

UNIFIL, it added, "is ... in close contact with the IDF to facilitate a speedy withdrawal from the area of Ghajar".

The Israeli army earlier said an "insignificant" number of troops would remain on the Lebanese side of Ghajar, which is dissected by the border with Lebanon and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.