Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday he has instructed Israel’s Cabinet to open direct negotiations with Lebanon.
“In light of Lebanon’s repeated calls to open direct negotiations with Israel, I instructed the Cabinet yesterday to open direct negotiations with Lebanon as soon as possible,” he said.
The negotiations will focus on disarming Hezbollah and establishing a peaceful relationship between Lebanon and Israel, Netanyahu said.
His statement comes as Israel is continuing strikes in Lebanon amid its ongoing war with Hezbollah. Israel’s military said Wednesday it hit 100 purported Hezbollah targets across the country in just 10 minutes – attacks that Lebanon said killed more than 250 people and injured over a thousand
Lebanon has emerged as a flashpoint in President Trump’s effort to end the Iran war. The U.S. and Israel have publicly disagreed with Iran and Pakistan over whether the country to Israel’s north is included in the Iran war ceasefire.
This development comes nearly a month after Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said that he had not received a response to his offer to negotiate directly with Israel to try to halt its war with Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Lebanon was drawn into the Middle East war when Iran-backed Hezbollah attacked Israel in response to the killing of Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in U.S.-Israeli strikes.
Aoun accused Hezbollah of trying to bring about the collapse of the Lebanese state and proposed a four-point initiative that included establishing a full truce with Israel, logistical support for the army to disarm Hezbollah, and direct negotiations with Israel under international auspices.
CBS/YL
