As tensions in the Middle East escalate and Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah renew strikes, the US State Department announced on Friday (local time) that Tel Aviv and Beirut will resume talks in Washington on May 14 and 15.
The U.S. State Department said in a press release: “Following the April 23 round, led personally by President Trump, the two delegations will engage in detailed discussions aimed at advancing a comprehensive peace and security agreement that substantively addresses the core concerns of both countries. The goal of these talks is a resolute departure from the failed approach of the past two decades that has allowed terrorist groups to consolidate and enrich Israel’s northern state border, undermine themselves.”
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Negotiating for a Lasting Peace: US State Department
The ministry added that the discussion will focus on building a framework to ensure lasting peace and security measures, the full restoration of Lebanese sovereignty throughout its territory, the demarcation of borders and the creation of concrete pathways for humanitarian aid and reconstruction in Lebanon.
Washington welcomed the commitment of both the Israeli and Lebanese governments, noting that full peace is conditional on the full restoration of Lebanese state power and the complete disarmament of Hezbollah, the US-designated foreign terrorist organization.
Hezbollah fires rockets at an Israeli military base
The development comes as Hezbollah, the Iran-backed group, fired a barrage of rockets at a military base in Israel on Friday (local time) in response to Israeli strikes that killed the top commander of its Radwar Force on Wednesday. Lebanese authorities announced that five people, including a paramedic, were killed in fresh Israeli airstrikes, AFP reported.
In a statement, the group said the rockets targeted the base south of the Israeli city of Nahariya “in response to ceasefire violations by Israel’s enemy, targeting the southern suburbs of Beirut and attacks that hit villages and civilians in southern Lebanon.”
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Lebanon’s prime minister commits to peace talks
Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said on Friday that the country’s government is determined to ensure that weapons are exclusively in the hands of the state, in line with the decisions of the Lebanese government, the Jerusalem Post reported.
Salam noted that he believed talks between the two sides could end the conflict, adding that Beirut would propose an end to Tel Aviv’s airstrikes in the region, the release of prisoners and a gradual withdrawal from southern Lebanon.
US Secretary of State on Hezbollah disarmament
Earlier on Friday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stressed the importance of disarming Hezbollah. Speaking to reporters, Rubio said, “We want the relationship between Israel and Lebanon, its legitimate government, to be very strong. The obstacle to that is Hezbollah.”
He went on to say that Washington’s goal is to empower the Lebanese government to deal with Hezbollah and its persistent threats, and called on other countries to help the Beirut government cut off funding to Hezbollah.
“We all share the same goal, which is a strong Lebanese government that does not have armed Hezbollah on its soil,” Rubio said.
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Hezbollah is dragging Lebanon into a war in the Middle East
According to reports, Hezbollah entered the wider Middle East conflict on March 2, shortly after the US and Israel launched military operations against their ally, Iran. The group has carried out attacks on Israel in solidarity with Tehran.
Since then, Israeli airstrikes across Lebanon have reportedly killed over 2,700 people and forced more than a million residents to flee, mainly from southern and eastern Lebanon, as well as the southern suburbs of Beirut.
Key things
- The US is actively brokering peace talks to stabilize the Israeli-Lebanese conflict amid rising tensions.
- Hezbollah’s military actions are a direct response to Israeli strikes and complicate the peace process.
- Long-term stability in the region depends on disarming Hezbollah and strengthening the Lebanese government.
