Israel withdrew the last of its troops from Lebanon early Sunday, the army said, fulfilling a key condition of the UN cease-fire that ended a monthlong war with Hezbollah guerrillas.

Military officials said the last soldier exited Lebanon just after 2:30 a.m. (0030 GMT).

On Saturday, Lebanese officials, who declined to be identified, said the commander of UN peacekeepers in Lebanon Major General Alain Pellegrini had informed Prime Minister Fouad Siniora that Israel planned to complete its withdrawal.

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"We have to wait and see if the Israelis will stick to their word this time," one official said. "We've had similar promises in the past that did not materialize."

Alexander Ivanko, spokesman for the UNIFIL force, said he had no comment on the matter.

The IDF spokesman's office declined to comment on the planned withdrawal, citing security concerns. But earlier Saturday, a Lebanese government official said the UN peacekeeping mission had informed Lebanon that the withdrawal would be complete by Sunday.

Military sources said IDF forces will, however, remain in the Lebanese part of the village of Maghar, which straddles both sides of the border, until a breach in the security fence is mended.

They said the army will pullout as soon as the barrier is fixed and adequate security measures have been agreed on with UN observers.

The UN resolution that opened the way for a cease-fire ending more than a month of fighting August 14 calls on Israel to withdraw from Lebanon, but does not specify a deadline.

Israeli military officials said Thursday that the pullout would most likely come after the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur on Monday.

Israeli officials have been reluctant to withdraw the last of their troops, now thought to number several thousand after peaking around 30,000 at the end of the 34-day war with Hezbollah which began July 12. They cited disagreements over the deployment of Lebanese and UN forces in southern Lebanon, which has long been a stronghold of Hezbollah militants.

Some 10,000 Lebanese soldiers and more than 5,000 UN troops have been deployed in the south.

The UN resolution calls for 15,000 peacekeepers to work with an equal number of Lebanese soldiers to prevent another outbreak of fighting. It mandates a full Israeli pullout and requires the south be kept free of weapons except for arms approved by the Lebanese government.