Lebanon's defense minister says Syria will begin re-deploying troops Monday from coastal and central Lebanon to the Bekaa Valley near the Syrian border.
Syria has not announced a timetable for completing the pullback, and has not said whether its estimated 14,000 troops in Lebanon will remain in Lebanese territory or fully withdraw from the country.
But today (Sunday), (Lebanese) Defense Minister Abdul Rahim Mrad said troops will begin moving immediately after Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and pro-Syrian Lebanese President Emile Lahoud confer in Damascus.
Lebanese opposition leader Walid Jumblatt is demanding a timeline for withdrawal and the U.S. State Department said it must be immediate and complete.
However, the militant anti-Israel Hezbollah organization is rejecting calls for an immediate Syrian pullout. The group is calling for pro-Syrian demonstrations Tuesday in Beirut.