A looming peace in South Lebanon after Israel and Hezbollah, an Iran-backed group, both agree on the US and France’s peace deal, per an announcement of US President Biden on Tuesday.
After a year of deadly conflict along the Israeli-Lebanese border, which claimed thousands of lives, US President Joe Biden succeeded in convincing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his security cabinet, and Lebanon’s Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati to reach an agreement.
The ceasefire, set to begin on Wednesday at 4 a.m. local time (0200 GMT), is intended as a step toward a permanent cessation of hostilities. Under the agreement, Israel will withdraw its forces within 60 days, while Lebanon will take control of the border area to prevent Hezbollah from rebuilding and posing a future threat to Israel’s security.
French President Emmanuel Macron expressed his appreciation on platform X, calling it the result of months of collaboration with Israeli, Lebanese, and US authorities. Lebanon’s Mikati also welcomed the deal, while his Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib confirmed 5,000 troops would deploy to the area as Israeli forces withdraw.
Meanwhile, Netanyahu, despite facing opposition within his government, agreed to the ceasefire deal. He stated it would allow Israel to rest, resupply, and shift focus to other threats, such as Iran and Hamas, the militant group responsible for igniting the Gaza war.
Nonetheless, Netanyahu warned that Israel would respond forcefully if Hezbollah violated the agreement or attempted to rearm. Despite this, he emphasized that Hezbollah has been significantly weakened, with losses of senior leaders, weapons, fighters, and influence along the border.
Despite the impending ceasefire, Israel’s military launched an attack on what it claimed were “components of Hezbollah’s financial management and systems.” Meanwhile, Hezbollah continued firing rockets into Israel, with the military intercepting three launches from Lebanese territory.
To prevent violations during the ceasefire, a senior US official, speaking anonymously, confirmed that the US and France would support the UNIFIL peacekeeping force in this mission, adding that US combat troops would not be deployed.
Regarding the next step of the US, President Biden pledged to continue working toward a ceasefire and a hostage-release deal in Gaza, as well as efforts to normalize relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia, despite having only a few months remaining in office.
