&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "Israel and Lebanon agree to implement ceasefire following US-led talks in Washington")
Israel and Lebanon have agreed to work towards a ceasefire following US-led talks in Washington on Wednesday (June 04). The agreement depends on a “complete cessation” of hostilities by Iran-backed Hezbollah, according to a joint statement issued by the United States, Israel and Lebanon.
“As a result of the US-led negotiations, Israel and Lebanon agreed to the implementation of a ceasefire. The ceasefire is contingent on a complete cessation of Hizbollah fire and the evacuation of all Hizbollah operatives from the South Litani Sector,” the statement said.
Although the two countries do not share formal diplomatic relations, they also agreed to establish “pilot zones” where the Lebanese armed forces would assume exclusive control, removing all non-state actors from those areas.
Both sides will return for further discussions on political and security issues during the week of June 22, with the aim of reaching a broader and comprehensive agreement.
“All countries reaffirmed that the future of the relationship between Israel and Lebanon must be decided by the two sovereign governments,” the statement said.
It further noted that “they rejected any attempt, by any state or non-state actor, to hold Lebanon's future hostage,” in what appeared to be a reference to Iran and its ally Hezbollah.
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The development came as fighting continued on the ground, with Hezbollah claiming missile attacks on northern Israel on Wednesday and Lebanese authorities reporting that Israeli strikes in the south killed at least nine people, including two paramedics.
The diplomatic breakthrough comes just days after Iran threatened to walk away from secret peace talks with the United States unless Israel stopped its military operations in Lebanon.
Earlier on Wednesday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned that any strike on Beirut could trigger a “full-scale resumption” of the wider Middle East conflict as Israel continued its military campaign against Hezbollah.
“The fate of the war between Iran and the Zionists (Israel) and Americans is inseparable from the fate of the battle in Lebanon, and these two fronts have been intertwined since day one,” Araghchi was quoted as saying in an interview with Lebanon’s Al Mayadeen TV.
He added, “Any attack on Beirut will have grave consequences and will lead to a full-scale resumption of the war,” warning that Iran’s “armed forces are ready to strike Israel if it attacks Beirut.”
