diff --git a/src/test/regress/expected/issue_7896.out b/src/test/regress/expected/issue_7896.out
index 09f19c94a..cbb1c31dc 100644
--- a/src/test/regress/expected/issue_7896.out
+++ b/src/test/regress/expected/issue_7896.out
@@ -1,46 +1,161 @@
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- Regression Test: Simulate zombie replication slot when
+-- citus_rebalance_wait() is canceled.
+--
+-- In the buggy behavior, canceling citus_rebalance_wait()
+-- (via a short statement_timeout or Ctrl+C) leaves behind an active logical
+-- replication slot on a worker. This, in turn, prevents DROP DATABASE
+-- (with FORCE) from succeeding.
+--
+-- With your fix applied, the underlying rebalance job is canceled,
+-- no zombie slot remains, and DROP DATABASE succeeds.
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- 1) Create an isolated schema for this test.
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
 CREATE SCHEMA issue_7896;
 SET search_path TO issue_7896;
--- Create a temporary table to simulate the background job catalog.
--- (In production this would be the actual catalog table.)
-CREATE TEMP TABLE pg_dist_background_job
-(
-    job_id    int8 PRIMARY KEY,
-    job_state text,
-    started_at timestamptz,
-    finished_at timestamptz
-);
--- Insert a dummy job record with job_state set to 'running'
-INSERT INTO pg_dist_background_job (job_id, job_state, started_at)
-VALUES (1001, 'running', now());
--- Set a short statement timeout so that citus_rebalance_wait times out quickly.
-SET statement_timeout = '1000ms';
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- 2) Set cluster parameters and initialize environment.
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- We assume a coordinator with at least two workers.
+-- Set replication factor to 2 and enable repartition joins.
+SET citus.shard_replication_factor TO 2;
+SET citus.enable_repartition_joins TO ON;
+-- For faster background task processing, set a short background task queue interval.
+ALTER SYSTEM SET citus.background_task_queue_interval TO '1s';
+SELECT pg_reload_conf();
+ pg_reload_conf
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+ t
+(1 row)
+
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- 3) Create a distributed table.
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+DROP TABLE IF EXISTS t1;
+NOTICE:  table "t1" does not exist, skipping
+CREATE TABLE t1 (a int PRIMARY KEY);
+SELECT create_distributed_table('t1', 'a', shard_count => 4, colocate_with => 'none');
+ create_distributed_table
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+(1 row)
+
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- 4) Insert enough data so that a rebalance has measurable work.
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+INSERT INTO t1
+  SELECT generate_series(1, 1000000);
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- 5) Verify that a rebalance on a balanced cluster is a no-op.
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+SELECT 1 FROM citus_rebalance_start();
+NOTICE:  No moves available for rebalancing
+ ?column?
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+        1
+(1 row)
+
+-- Expected: NOTICE "No moves available for rebalancing".
+SELECT citus_rebalance_wait();
+WARNING:  no ongoing rebalance that can be waited on
+ citus_rebalance_wait
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+(1 row)
+
+-- Expected: WARNING "no ongoing rebalance that can be waited on".
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- 6) Force a shard movement so that a rebalance job is scheduled.
+-- Remove and re-add a worker using a parameter placeholder.
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+SELECT citus_remove_node('localhost', :worker_2_port);
+ citus_remove_node
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+(1 row)
+
+SELECT citus_add_node('localhost', :worker_2_port);
+ citus_add_node
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+             30
+(1 row)
+
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- 7) Start a rebalance job that will do actual work.
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+SELECT citus_rebalance_start(
+         rebalance_strategy := 'by_disk_size',
+         shard_transfer_mode   := 'force_logical'
+       );
+NOTICE:  Scheduled 2 moves as job xxx
+DETAIL:  Rebalance scheduled as background job
+HINT:  To monitor progress, run: SELECT * FROM citus_rebalance_status();
+ citus_rebalance_start
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+                     1
+(1 row)
+
+-- Expected: Notice that moves are scheduled as a background job.
+-- (You may verify with: SELECT * FROM citus_rebalance_status();)
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- 8) Attempt to wait on the rebalance with a short timeout so that the wait
+--    is canceled. The PG_CATCH block in citus_job_wait_internal should then
+--    cancel the underlying job (cleaning up temporary replication slots).
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+SET statement_timeout = '2s';
 DO $$
 BEGIN
     BEGIN
-        -- Call the wait function.
-        -- Note: The public function citus_rebalance_wait() takes no arguments.
+        RAISE NOTICE 'Waiting on rebalance with a 2-second timeout...';
+        -- Public function citus_rebalance_wait() takes no arguments.
         PERFORM citus_rebalance_wait();
     EXCEPTION
         WHEN query_canceled THEN
-            RAISE NOTICE 'Query canceled as expected';
-            -- Swallow the error so the transaction continues.
+            RAISE NOTICE 'Rebalance wait canceled as expected';
+            -- Your fix should cancel the underlying rebalance job.
     END;
 END;
 $$ LANGUAGE plpgsql;
-WARNING:  no ongoing rebalance that can be waited on
-CONTEXT:  SQL statement "SELECT citus_rebalance_wait()"
-PL/pgSQL function inline_code_block line XX at PERFORM
--- Reset the statement timeout for subsequent queries.
+NOTICE:  Waiting on rebalance with a 2-second timeout...
+CONTEXT:  PL/pgSQL function inline_code_block line XX at RAISE
+NOTICE:  Rebalance wait canceled as expected
+CONTEXT:  PL/pgSQL function inline_code_block line XX at RAISE
 SET statement_timeout = '0';
--- Verify that the job's state has been updated to 'cancelled'
--- (the expected outcome after a cancellation).
-SELECT job_state
-FROM pg_dist_background_job
-WHERE job_id = 1001;
- job_state
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
- running
-(1 row)
+-- 9) Cleanup orphaned background resources (if any).
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_resources();
+NOTICE:  cleaned up 5 orphaned resources
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- 12) Traverse nodes and check for active replication slots.
+--
+-- Connect to the coordinator and worker nodes, then query for replication slots.
+-- Expected Outcome (with the fix applied): No active replication slots.
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+\c - - - :master_port
+SELECT * FROM pg_replication_slots;
+ slot_name | plugin | slot_type | datoid | database | temporary | active | active_pid | xmin | catalog_xmin | restart_lsn | confirmed_flush_lsn | wal_status | safe_wal_size | two_phase | inactive_since | conflicting | invalidation_reason | failover | synced
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+(0 rows)
 
-SET client_min_messages TO WARNING;
-DROP SCHEMA issue_7896 CASCADE;
+\c - - - :worker_1_port
+SELECT * FROM pg_replication_slots;
+ slot_name | plugin | slot_type | datoid | database | temporary | active | active_pid | xmin | catalog_xmin | restart_lsn | confirmed_flush_lsn | wal_status | safe_wal_size | two_phase | inactive_since | conflicting | invalidation_reason | failover | synced
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+(0 rows)
+
+\c - - - :worker_2_port
+SELECT * FROM pg_replication_slots;
+ slot_name | plugin | slot_type | datoid | database | temporary | active | active_pid | xmin | catalog_xmin | restart_lsn | confirmed_flush_lsn | wal_status | safe_wal_size | two_phase | inactive_since | conflicting | invalidation_reason | failover | synced
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+(0 rows)
+
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- 11) Cleanup: Drop the test schema.
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+\c - - - :master_port
+SET search_path TO issue_7896;
+DROP SCHEMA IF EXISTS issue_7896 CASCADE;
+NOTICE:  drop cascades to table t1
diff --git a/src/test/regress/multi_schedule b/src/test/regress/multi_schedule
index 3d7bd6e98..0a5c6a422 100644
--- a/src/test/regress/multi_schedule
+++ b/src/test/regress/multi_schedule
@@ -104,7 +104,7 @@ test: multi_dropped_column_aliases foreign_key_restriction_enforcement
 test: binary_protocol
 test: alter_table_set_access_method
 test: alter_distributed_table
-test: issue_5248 issue_5099 issue_5763 issue_6543 issue_6758 issue_7477 issue_7891
+test: issue_5248 issue_5099 issue_5763 issue_6543 issue_6758 issue_7477 issue_7891 issue_7896
 test: object_propagation_debug
 test: undistribute_table
 test: run_command_on_all_nodes
diff --git a/src/test/regress/sql/issue_7896.sql b/src/test/regress/sql/issue_7896.sql
index 12d5ff341..679a5373d 100644
--- a/src/test/regress/sql/issue_7896.sql
+++ b/src/test/regress/sql/issue_7896.sql
@@ -1,45 +1,117 @@
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- Regression Test: Simulate zombie replication slot when 
+-- citus_rebalance_wait() is canceled.
+--
+-- In the buggy behavior, canceling citus_rebalance_wait()
+-- (via a short statement_timeout or Ctrl+C) leaves behind an active logical
+-- replication slot on a worker. This, in turn, prevents DROP DATABASE
+-- (with FORCE) from succeeding.
+--
+-- With your fix applied, the underlying rebalance job is canceled,
+-- no zombie slot remains, and DROP DATABASE succeeds.
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- 1) Create an isolated schema for this test.
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
 CREATE SCHEMA issue_7896;
 SET search_path TO issue_7896;
 
--- Create a temporary table to simulate the background job catalog.
--- (In production this would be the actual catalog table.)
-CREATE TEMP TABLE pg_dist_background_job
-(
-    job_id    int8 PRIMARY KEY,
-    job_state text,
-    started_at timestamptz,
-    finished_at timestamptz
-);
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- 2) Set cluster parameters and initialize environment.
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- We assume a coordinator with at least two workers.
+-- Set replication factor to 2 and enable repartition joins.
+SET citus.shard_replication_factor TO 2;
+SET citus.enable_repartition_joins TO ON;
+-- For faster background task processing, set a short background task queue interval.
+ALTER SYSTEM SET citus.background_task_queue_interval TO '1s';
+SELECT pg_reload_conf();
 
--- Insert a dummy job record with job_state set to 'running'
-INSERT INTO pg_dist_background_job (job_id, job_state, started_at)
-VALUES (1001, 'running', now());
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- 3) Create a distributed table.
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+DROP TABLE IF EXISTS t1;
+CREATE TABLE t1 (a int PRIMARY KEY);
+SELECT create_distributed_table('t1', 'a', shard_count => 4, colocate_with => 'none');
 
--- Set a short statement timeout so that citus_rebalance_wait times out quickly.
-SET statement_timeout = '1000ms';
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- 4) Insert enough data so that a rebalance has measurable work.
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+INSERT INTO t1
+  SELECT generate_series(1, 1000000);
 
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- 5) Verify that a rebalance on a balanced cluster is a no-op.
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+SELECT 1 FROM citus_rebalance_start();
+-- Expected: NOTICE "No moves available for rebalancing".
+SELECT citus_rebalance_wait();
+-- Expected: WARNING "no ongoing rebalance that can be waited on".
+
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- 6) Force a shard movement so that a rebalance job is scheduled.
+-- Remove and re-add a worker using a parameter placeholder.
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+SELECT citus_remove_node('localhost', :worker_2_port);
+SELECT citus_add_node('localhost', :worker_2_port);
+
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- 7) Start a rebalance job that will do actual work.
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+SELECT citus_rebalance_start(
+         rebalance_strategy := 'by_disk_size',
+         shard_transfer_mode   := 'force_logical'
+       );
+-- Expected: Notice that moves are scheduled as a background job.
+-- (You may verify with: SELECT * FROM citus_rebalance_status();)
+
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- 8) Attempt to wait on the rebalance with a short timeout so that the wait
+--    is canceled. The PG_CATCH block in citus_job_wait_internal should then
+--    cancel the underlying job (cleaning up temporary replication slots).
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+SET statement_timeout = '2s';
 DO $$
 BEGIN
     BEGIN
-        -- Call the wait function.
-        -- Note: The public function citus_rebalance_wait() takes no arguments.
+        RAISE NOTICE 'Waiting on rebalance with a 2-second timeout...';
+        -- Public function citus_rebalance_wait() takes no arguments.
         PERFORM citus_rebalance_wait();
     EXCEPTION
         WHEN query_canceled THEN
-            RAISE NOTICE 'Query canceled as expected';
-            -- Swallow the error so the transaction continues.
+            RAISE NOTICE 'Rebalance wait canceled as expected';
+            -- Your fix should cancel the underlying rebalance job.
     END;
 END;
 $$ LANGUAGE plpgsql;
-
--- Reset the statement timeout for subsequent queries.
 SET statement_timeout = '0';
 
--- Verify that the job's state has been updated to 'cancelled'
--- (the expected outcome after a cancellation).
-SELECT job_state
-FROM pg_dist_background_job
-WHERE job_id = 1001;
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- 9) Cleanup orphaned background resources (if any).
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_resources();
+
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- 10) Traverse nodes and check for active replication slots.
+--
+-- Connect to the coordinator and worker nodes, then query for replication slots.
+-- Expected Outcome (with the fix applied): No active replication slots.
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+\c - - - :master_port
+SELECT * FROM pg_replication_slots;
+
+\c - - - :worker_1_port
+SELECT * FROM pg_replication_slots;
+
+\c - - - :worker_2_port
+SELECT * FROM pg_replication_slots;
+
+
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- 11) Cleanup: Drop the test schema.
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+\c - - - :master_port
+SET search_path TO issue_7896;
+DROP SCHEMA IF EXISTS issue_7896 CASCADE;
 
-SET client_min_messages TO WARNING;
-DROP SCHEMA issue_7896 CASCADE;