President Donald Trump said Israel and Lebanon had agreed to extend a ceasefire between Israel and the Hezbollah militant group by three weeks after talks at the White House on Thursday. Trump said the second meeting between the Israeli and Lebanese ambassadors in the United States during the week went “very well,” but noted during the Oval Office meeting that Lebanon still had to deal with Hezbollah.
These were the first direct diplomatic talks between Israel and Lebanon in decades, signaling a major breakthrough for the neighboring states, which have officially remained at war since Israel’s founding in 1948.
What did Trump say?
“The United States will work with Lebanon to help protect itself from Hezbollah,” Trump said in a post on social media.
Trump later said in the Oval Office: “Three weeks. The leaders will most likely come here during that time. . . . They’ve never met. They’re next to each other. They’re great people and they’ve never met . . .”
He added that he expects to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun in Washington in the next few weeks.
Trump went on to reiterate that Israel has the right to defend itself “if it is fired upon, and it will.”
“We hope that together under your leadership we can formalize peace between Israel and Lebanon in the very near future,” said Israeli Ambassador Yechiel Leiter.
Lebanese Ambassador Nada Hamadeh Moawad thanked Trump “for all your efforts to help and support Lebanon.” She referred to his “Make America Great Again” slogan when she said, “And I think with your help, with your support, we can make Lebanon great again.”
But the Iran-backed group opposes the talks and there have been numerous violations on both sides since the original ceasefire came into effect last Friday.
The fighting continues
The latest war began when Hezbollah fired rockets into northern Israel, two days after Israel and the US launched attacks on Iran. Israel responded with extensive bombing of Lebanon and a ground invasion that captured dozens of towns and villages along the border.
The Israeli military occupies a buffer zone stretching up to 6 miles (10 kilometers) into southern Lebanon. Israel says its goal is to eliminate the threat of short-range rockets and anti-tank missiles fired at northern Israel.
Hezbollah was not a participant in diplomacy. Wafiq Safa, a senior member of the militant group’s political council, told The Associated Press that it would not abide by any agreements made during direct talks.
