Israel reached a deal for a 60-day ceasefire with the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah after weeks of talks mediated by the US, a first step toward ending a conflict that’s killed thousands of people and opening the door to fresh peace initiatives in the Gaza Strip.
President Joe Biden, who spoke after talking with the leaders of Israel and Lebanon, said at the White House on Tuesday that all sides had agreed to a ceasefire that would “end the devastating conflict between Israel and Hezbollah”.
He added that the US, along with Egypt, Qatar and Turkey, would make a fresh push for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
Earlier Tuesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that he would bring the proposed Lebanon ceasefire to a vote by his security cabinet, which gave its approval. He said Israel would now be able to focus on “the Iranian threat” and heighten pressure in its war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
The truce proposal came after one of Biden’s main Middle East envoys, Amos Hochstein, shuttled between Israel and Lebanon in an effort to end the conflict before President-elect Donald Trump takes over the White House in January. Both Hezbollah and Hamas are designated terrorist organizations by the US and many other countries.
While the agreement drew objections from some hardliners in Israel, Biden cast it as a step toward a broader, more lasting peace in the region. Along with the effort to bring the conflict with Hamas to an end, he said the US also wanted to reach a deal that would normalise ties between Israel and Saudi Arabia and establish a “credible pathway” to a Palestinian state.
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“I believe this agenda remains possible, and in my remaining time in office I’ll work tirelessly to advance this vision for an integrated, secure, and prosperous region, all of which strengthens America’s national security,” Biden said in a speech in the Rose Garden.
Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron issued a joint statement pledging their nations would work with all sides to ensure the agreement is fully enforced and prevent more violence.
The deal for a 60-day pause could clear the way for a more lasting ceasefire after more than a year of clashes that have destroyed the Lebanon-Israel border area and seen Israel bomb parts of Beirut, as well as other Lebanese cities.
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“The deal to end the fighting between Hezbollah and Israel is an important outcome but won’t easily translate into a deal to end the war in Gaza or quell broader tensions in the region because each of these conflicts have taken on a life of their own,” said Brian Katulis, a former US official now at the Middle East Institute. “It’s good news to see the fighting come to an end but the core regional tensions remain high.”
Shortly after Biden spoke, Israel and Hezbollah pressed ahead with attacks. The militant group said it had carried out drone attacks on targets in Tel Aviv.
Talks on a longer-term ceasefire would likely be complicated. Israel wants Hezbollah to remove its fighters and weapons from the border region in southern Lebanon, with United Nations forces and the Lebanese military patrolling the area to ensure that happens.
These were the requirements of a UN resolution, known as 1701, that ended a 2006 war between the two sides. One key obstacle to a truce in this conflict has been Israel’s insistence on being able to continue striking Hezbollah positions if it thought the group was breaching the terms of any ceasefire agreement.
Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati said his government was committed to strengthening its army’s presence along the border with Israel as part of the ceasefire plan, according to the state-run National News Agency.
But Netanyahu said in his remarks that the duration of the truce depends on developments in Lebanon. “If Hezbollah chooses to re-arm, we’ll attack,” he said.
Nor was support for the ceasefire unanimous in Israel’s security cabinet. Hardline National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir voted against the accord, posting on X that it’s “a serious mistake. A ceasefire at this stage will not return the residents of the north to their homes, will not deter Hezbollah and in fact will miss a historic opportunity to strike them hard and bring them to their knees.”
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Oil and gold prices have fallen this week, with traders optimistic a truce would help calm the Middle East. The Israeli shekel has also strengthened.
About 3,100 people have been killed in Lebanon by the Israeli strikes and ground offensive in the past two months, and 1.2 million — more than a fifth of the population — have been displaced.
“I am hopeful but not optimistic,” Mara Rudman, who worked on Middle East issues during the Clinton and Obama administrations, said of a prospective truce with Hamas. She said Netanyahu was “subservient to his radical right ministers who have never prioritised the hostages” being held in Gaza.
