US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke on Monday about the potential for a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.
After the call, Trump announced that Israel had agreed that “there will be no Troops going to Beirut, and any Troops that are on their way, have already been turned back.”
In exchange, he said, Hezbollah had agreed that all shooting will stop – “That Israel will not attack them, and they will not attack Israel.”
Later, Netanyahu announced that he had told Trump that “if Hezbollah doesn’t stop attacking our towns and citizens – Israel will attack terror targets in Beirut.”
He also said that the IDF would continue to operate as planned in southern Lebanon.
The Lebanese Embassy in Washington had earlier confirmed that Hezbollah had accepted the US proposal, saying that the ceasefire framework would be expanded to encompass “all Lebanese territories.”
The embassy’s statement also claimed that Trump had told Lebanon’s Ambassador to the United States that Netanyahu had also agreed to the arrangement.
The speaker of the Lebanese parliament, Nabih Berri, had earlier informed Trump’s administration of Hezbollah‘s readiness for a ceasefire with Israel and that it has promised to guarantee that it would be implemented, Axios reported on Monday, citing Berri’s top advisor Ali Hamdan. Berri is Shia, and heads Lebanon’s Amal Movement.
“I called the US ambassador to Beirut, Michel Issa, on Sunday and told him on behalf of Speaker Berri that Hezbollah will be ready to totally commit to a comprehensive ceasefire and we are ready to guarantee it,” Hamdan told Axios.
Hamdan also said that the US had proposed a partial ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, in which Hezbollah would end its strikes on northern Israel, and in exchange, Israel would not strike Beirut.
Israeli officials were concerned that the discussion between Trump and Netanyahu would end in the cancellation of the planned strike in Dahiyeh. After the call, two Israeli officials told Reuters that Israel would be waiting for Trump’s final approval before any operation in Beirut’s southern suburbs.
“The proposal we received was no Hezbollah attacks on northern Israel and that in return Israel will not bomb Beirut and then gradually the ceasefire will expand to other areas,” Hamdan said. “Speaker Berri’s reply was, “Why a partial ceasefire? Let’s have a full ceasefire.”
Netanyahu unlikely to agree to Hezbollah ceasefire
Another unnamed source, however, told Axios that US officials told Berri that Netanyahu was unlikely to agree.
An Israeli official confirmed to Axios that Hezbollah seemed ready for a full ceasefire, and that it was not demanding Israel fully withdraw from Lebanon in return.
“We are sure Hezbollah will commit to a total ceasefire. We think it will be more productive,” Hamdan said. “We know time is running out.”
