Netanyahu announces “direct negotiations” with Lebanon for a peace plan that includes disarming Hezbollah

“In the face of repeated requests from Lebanon to begin direct negotiations with Israel, yesterday I instructed the cabinet to begin such negotiations as soon as possible“Netanyahu said in a statement collected by Reuters. “The negotiations will focus on the disarmament of Hezbollah and the establishment of peaceful relations between Israel and Lebanon.”

In the same message, Netanyahu indicated that he appreciated “the call made today by the Prime Minister of Lebanon to demilitarize Beirut.” For the moment, the Lebanese Government has not responded to these statements. An hour earlier, however, the president Joseph Aoun He said that “the only solution is to achieve a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, followed by direct negotiations between them.”

It is nDirect negotiations between Israel and Lebanon will begin next week, according to a senior Israeli official. The first meeting will take place in the State Department in Washington.

The American side will be led by the ambassador to Lebanon, Michel Issa. Israel, for its part, will be represented by its ambassador in Washington, Yechiel Leiter, and the Lebanese side by its ambassador in Washington, Nada Hamadeh-Moawad.

A fragile ceasefire

Netanyahu’s announcement comes two days after the United States and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire. In recent hours, however, contradictory interpretations have multiplied as to whether the pact includes or not the cessation of hostilities in Lebanon.

“The two-week ceasefire does not include Lebanon, we will continue to attack,” Netanyahu said Wednesday afternoon in an appearance in which he defended the continuity of his offensive. Just a few hours earlier, Israeli forces launched the biggest attack since the start of the warwhich left more than 250 dead and a thousand injured.

In response, Tehran warned that it would respond and would break the agreementwhich includes the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz for oil tankers, if the bombings were not stopped.

Although the United States also denied that Lebanon was part of the ceasefire agreement, Pakistani mediators claimed that it was included.

With this announcement the main obstacle for the negotiations between Washington and Tehran that will begin this Saturday in Islamabad, capital of Pakistan, mediator in the conflict, seems to be unblocked – for the moment -.

According to American media such as NBC News, Trump asked Netanyahu in a phone call on Wednesday to reduce attacks on Lebanon to prevent the collapse of the fragile ceasefire with Iran.

In fact, the American vice president, JD Vance, He also stated on Wednesday that Israel had agreed to “reflect” on its position regarding Lebanon to facilitate negotiations with Iran.

Following Trump’s request, the Israeli Air Force continued this Thursday bombing Lebanon, although with a slightly lower intensity than the previous day. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported attacking weapons depots, rocket launchers and Hezbollah headquarters in southern Lebanon.