Israel Prime Minister, Netanyahu Agrees To Ceasefire With Hezbollah In Lebanon
The Prime Minister mentioned that the ceasefire would enable families to return to northern Israel after months displaced by the conflict on the northern border.
Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has supported a move to stop the ongoing war in Lebanon.
Netanyahu announced this on Tuesday evening, saying his cabinet would be briefed about the agreement to stop the war against Hezbollah.
The Prime Minister mentioned that the ceasefire would enable families to return to northern Israel after months displaced by the conflict on the northern border.
Faced with significant opposition from members of his cabinet, he stressed that the ceasefire would depend on “what happens” in Lebanon.
He added that Israel would maintain “full freedom” to act in Lebanon, and said a truce would allow Israel to “focus on the Iranian threat.”
The Israeli prime minister spoke on Tuesday after weeks of discussions over a US-led deal mediated with Hezbollah by the government of Lebanon.
The agreement is understood to be based on UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the war between Hezbollah in Israel in 2006.
Netanyahu insisted late Tuesday that a deal would allow Israel to focus attention on Israel and “will intensify” pressure on Hamas.
Israeli forces have been locked in intense clashes with Hezbollah since late September, escalating their campaign by land and air with a ground offensive into the south after nearly a year of cross-border exchanges.
Lebanese officials echoed support for a deal after months caught in the crossfire between Israeli forces and Hezbollah.
Prime Minister Najib Mikati demanded an ‘immediate’ implementation of the ceasefire as Israel continued to pound central Beirut’s Hamra district.
To date, the Lebanese health ministry estimates that at least 3,754 people have been killed in the country since October 2023, most of them since September.
American officials, leading the talks, also spoke optimistically of progress towards a deal tonight.
