Israel-Lebanon Talks Resume in Washington as Beirut Demands Ceasefire and IDF Withdrawal

At U.S. State Department headquarters in Washington, a new round of talks began today (Tuesday) between Lebanon and Israel — the fourth round so far. The meeting is being mediated by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, after a night in which Hezbollah fired barrages toward wide areas of the Galilee, despite U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement of a ceasefire.

Lebanese media reported ahead of the talks that the Lebanese government had sent a message to the U.S. stating that Lebanon is insisting on a comprehensive ceasefire across all parts of the country, along with an IDF withdrawal from southern areas. Israel responded that it will not withdraw its forces from southern Lebanon at this stage.

Saudi channel Al-Hadath reported that as part of the negotiations, a proposal would be raised to deploy the Lebanese army and UNIFIL in the areas the IDF would evacuate in southern Lebanon, and that the de-escalation plan would include a withdrawal of Hezbollah terrorists to areas north of the Litani River. The proposal is similar to the understanding that was reportedly reached a month and a half ago, and was not carried out by Hezbollah.

Later, the Lebanese channel "Al-Jadeed" reported that during today’s talks, the Israeli delegation said Hezbollah had not halted the fighting after President Trump’s ceasefire announcement. Israel expressed its reservations about statements by senior Hezbollah officials rejecting the formula of "a ceasefire in Dahieh in exchange for a ceasefire in northern Israel," and made clear that this refusal is complicating the negotiations.

As previously reported, the U.S. president announced last night that Hezbollah is committed not to attack inside Israeli territory and that the IDF will not strike in Beirut. At the same time, U.S. media outlets reported overnight that the United States is focused on securing a comprehensive ceasefire, which could begin in the coming days.