Israel and Lebanon agree to renew ceasefire as Trump seeks to overcome barriers to Iran deal | Lebanon
The Trump administration announced that Israel and Lebanon have agreed to a ceasefire to end hostilities, at a time when the United States is trying to overcome one of the biggest obstacles to reaching a broader agreement to end the war with Iran.
In the joint statement issued by the US State Department after the negotiations in Washington, it was stated that the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire is contingent on the complete cessation of fire by the Iran-affiliated Hezbollah militia and the evacuation of all militants from the south of the country.
The two sides, which do not have formal diplomatic relations, also agreed to create “pilot zones” in which the Lebanese armed forces would “take exclusive control of the region to the exclusion of all non-state actors.”
A Hezbollah official told the AFP news agency on Tuesday that the group “will not accept a partial ceasefire” and that the group was not a party to the talks.
A ceasefire to halt fighting in Lebanon was scheduled for April 17, but clashes continued, with both sides justifying their continued attacks by the other’s alleged violations.
The talks in Washington were the fourth round of direct talks between Lebanese and Israeli diplomats since hostilities began on March 2, when Hezbollah renewed attacks on Israel in support of Iran.
Wednesday’s development follows continued cross-border attacks earlier in the day, with Hezbollah saying it targeted Israeli soldiers and Israeli strikes killing at least nine people in southern Lebanon.
Earlier in the day, US President Donald Trump said he wanted to separate talks on the conflict in Lebanon and the war with Iran. But Tehran insists the clashes are linked and this week threatened to suspend peace talks with the United States and collapse talks with Washington in protest of Israel’s attack on Lebanon.
Trump said Monday that Israel had halted its impending attack on Beirut and agreed with Netanyahu and Hezbollah representatives that “all shooting will stop.”
Trump confirmed reports that he had called Netanyahu “crazy” and said he was “a little uneasy” that Israel’s campaign against Hezbollah in Lebanon was complicating US-led efforts to advance peace talks with Iran.
According to analysts, Israel wants to inflict as much damage as possible on Hezbollah before a possible peace deal with Iran stops its offensive. Netanyahu told CNBC on Wednesday that he and Trump agree on the goal of disarming Hezbollah to ensure peace between Israel and Lebanon.
The US president is under pressure to resolve the Iran war as high energy prices and economic uncertainty threaten Republicans’ midterm election prospects and hinder global trade.
On Wednesday, the US House of Representatives delivered a stunning rebuke to Trump; representatives supported a move that would force Congressional approval for war or withdraw U.S. forces. The impact of the vote was largely symbolic, as it was not clear whether the resolution would have the force of law even if it passed the Senate.
Israel’s attacks on Wednesday included the immediate area of the public hospital in Tebnine, just days after attacks next to Hiram and Jabal Amel hospitals in Tire. Four people were killed and 127 injured, mostly medical personnel, in an attack near Jabal Amel on Monday.
The state-run National News Agency (NNA) also reported attacks on more than 20 locations in the south; Some of these attacks took place after the Israeli army warned residents of many villages to evacuate.
Lebanon’s health ministry said an ambulance was targeted in an Israeli attack on another location in the south and two medics from the Risala Scouts Association, affiliated with Hezbollah’s ally Amal movement, were killed.
Elsewhere on Wednesday, Iran struck Kuwait, killing one person, damaging the airport and wounding dozens; The US army carried out an attack near the Strait of Hormuz.
The attacks on Kuwait and the strait were the latest to test the tenuous ceasefire between the United States, Israel and Iran, and oil prices have risen almost 2% as the strait remains largely closed three months after the war began.
Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guard said they did not fire on Kuwait airport and blamed the destruction on US interceptor missiles that failed to hit their targets, according to Iranian state media. The US military said this was not true and that Iranian drones deliberately targeted the airport.
With Reuters and Agence France-Presse
