Beirut, Lebanon: Israel conducted strikes on south Lebanon and Hezbollah fired into northern Israel on Tuesday, after US President Donald Trump announced an agreement to halt attacks that neither side has publicly accepted.
According to Lebanon’s authorities, Hezbollah would no longer fire into Israel under the agreement, while the Israeli military would cease striking south Beirut, long a bastion of the Iran-backed militant group.
The developments followed a dramatic escalation in violence that saw Israeli troops stage their deepest incursion into Lebanon in two decades, conducting waves of heavy bombardment and threatening to strike the south Beirut suburbs.
As the violence threatened to scupper a ceasefire in the wider Middle East war between the US and Iran, 24-year-old south Beirut resident Hadi told AFP he had hoped for some stability, but “that feeling did not last long”.
The Israeli military said air defences intercepted two projectiles that crossed from Lebanon into northern Israel, hours after Trump’s announcement.
According to Lebanon’s National News Agency, Israel conducted fresh air strikes on south Lebanon on Tuesday.
Lebanon’s embassy in Washington had hours earlier said Hezbollah had accepted a US proposal for a “mutual cessation of attacks”, though there has been no official confirmation by the militant group.
– ‘For ETERNITY!’ –
“Israel’s strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs will cease, and in exchange Hezbollah will not attack Israel. And we will work to ensure the ceasefire expands to include all of Lebanon’s territory,” the Lebanese presidency said in a statement.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had told Trump “that if Hezbollah does not cease attacking our towns and our citizens, Israel will strike terrorist targets in Beirut”.
But Trump doubled down on his ceasefire push, posting on Truth Social that “hopefully” Israel and Hezbollah would stop fighting “for ETERNITY!”
“There will be no Troops going to Beirut, and any Troops that are on their way, have already been turned back,” Trump said after what he described as a “very productive” call with Netanyahu.
According to Axios, however, Trump called Netanyahu “fucking crazy” and accused him of putting Iran peace talks at risk.
“Likewise, through highly placed Representatives, I had a very good call with Hezbollah, and they agreed that all shooting will stop — That Israel will not attack them, and they will not attack Israel,” Trump added.
Hezbollah drew Lebanon into the Middle East war on March 2 by firing rockets at Israel in retaliation for the killing of Iran’s supreme leader, and Tehran has insisted that Lebanon be included in any peace deal with Washington.
According to Iran’s Tasnim news agency, Tehran was no longer engaging in talks with Washington due to Israel’s offensive.
– Trading blows –
The announcements came on the eve of a fourth round of US-hosted direct negotiations between Israel and Lebanon on Tuesday and Wednesday. Military delegations held security talks last week.
The threat of new strikes on south Beirut’s suburbs sent people fleeing the densely populated area in huge traffic jams linking the area to the capital city, AFP images showed.
A truce to halt the fighting in Lebanon began on April 17, but has never been observed.
Both Israel and Hezbollah accuse each other daily of violating the ceasefire, justifying their attacks by blaming the other for breaches.
According to Lebanon’s health ministry, Israeli attacks since March 2 have killed at least 3,433 people.
Israel’s military said two of its soldiers had been killed in southern Lebanon, bringing to 27 the number of Israeli military deaths since early March.
– Peacekeepers? –
Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, urged all sides “to respect the cessation of hostilities”.
In a report to the UN Security Council seen by AFP, Guterres said it would be necessary to maintain peacekeepers in Lebanon after the mandate of the current mission expires at year-end.
France’s Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said Tuesday that nothing could justify Israeli troops remaining deep inside Lebanon.
Israeli troops on Sunday seized the Beaufort castle, which commands sweeping views of south Lebanon.
Israeli forces used the castle, also known as Qalaat al-Chakif, as a base during their previous two-decade occupation of southern Lebanon that ended in 2000.
