View source for Trump economic zone (southern Lebanon)

{{short description|'''US proposal for an economic zone in southern Lebanon near the Israeli border, and the 2026 "pilot zones"'''}}
'''The "Trump economic zone"''' is a US proposal, first announced in Beirut in August 2025, to turn the area of southern Lebanon near the border with "Israel" into an economic and industrial zone after [[Hezbollah]] is disarmed. In 2026 a related model of "pilot zones" was launched in three southern villages.

== The 2025 proposal ==
On 26 August 2025 the US envoy, Tom Barrack, said in Beirut: "We bring in the Gulf countries simultaneously and a new economic zone, which will have some depth to it in the next few weeks." ''The National'' reported that Lebanese media said the idea had first been raised in Paris at a meeting between Barrack and Israel's strategic affairs minister, [[Ron Dermer]]. According to media reports the zone would be an "industrial buffer" near the border, hosting factories, to prevent Hezbollah from returning. ''The National'' noted that Israeli experts saw it as a way to meet "Israel"'s security concerns "without involving a reoccupation".<ref name="National2025">''The National'', [https://www.thenationalnews.com/news/mena/2025/08/26/trump-economic-zone-between-lebanon-and-israel-what-we-know/ 'Trump economic zone' between Lebanon and Israel: What we know] ''The National'', 26 August 2025, accessed 22 October 2026.</ref> Analysts told ''Al Jazeera'' the plan was "far-fetched and poorly thought-out".<ref name="AJ2025">Justin Salhani, [https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2025/9/1/will-us-backed-economic-zone-incentivise-lebanon-to-disarm-hezbollah Will a US-backed economic zone incentivise Lebanon to disarm Hezbollah?] ''Al Jazeera'', 1 September 2025, accessed 22 October 2026.</ref>

== The 2026 pilot zones ==
According to ''Mada Masr'', Lebanon and Israel signed a US-mediated trilateral framework on 26 June 2026. On 21 July the US announced pilot zone operations in Froun, Srifa and Zawtar al-Gharbiyah, where the Lebanese army deployed and residents could return. Two months later, ''Mada Masr'' reported, only 16 of 263 requested prefabricated homes had arrived, and Israeli troops were 300–400 metres from Zawtar al-Gharbiyah behind an earth berm. A local official told the paper that the Trump economic zone, spanning "more than two dozen towns", focused on "development and investment — not the Lebanese people's return".<ref name="MadaMasr2026">Lana Harb, [https://www.madamasr.com/en/2026/10/19/feature/politics/lebanons-pilot-zone-experiment-the-case-of-zawtar-al-gharbiyah/ Lebanon's 'pilot zone' experiment: The case of Zawtar al-Gharbiyah] ''Mada Masr'', 19 October 2026, accessed 22 October 2026.</ref>

== Israeli positions ==
The [[Alma Research and Education Center]] argued in March 2026 that "Israel" needed a "civilian-free buffer zone" in southern Lebanon, and that Lebanese civilians should return only when the "Resistance Society" hosting Hezbollah no longer exists.<ref name="Alma2026">Sarit Zehavi and Tal Beeri, [https://israel-alma.org/policy-paper-what-is-israels-endgame-in-the-campaign-in-lebanon/ Policy Paper – What Is Israel's "Endgame" in the Campaign in Lebanon?] ''Alma Research and Education Center'', 15 March 2026, accessed 22 October 2026 (Israeli-side).</ref> See [[Israeli occupation of southern Lebanon (2024–present)]].

== See also ==
* [[Donald Trump]]
* [[Morgan Ortagus]]

== Notes ==
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[[Category:Lebanon]]
[[Category:United States]]
[[Category:Occupied territories]]