Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has preliminarily approved a possible ceasefire agreement with the Lebanese Hezbollah movement. However, Israel wants to present some reservations and pass them on to the Lebanese authorities, CNN reports, citing a source familiar with the situation, UNN reports.
Details
These and other details are still being negotiated, and several sources emphasized that the agreement will not be finalized until all issues are resolved. The ceasefire agreement also needs to be approved by the Israeli government, which has not yet happened.
Sources familiar with the talks said the negotiations appear to be moving positively toward an agreement, but acknowledged that with Israel and Hezbollah launching strikes against each other, one misstep could derail the talks.
Last week, U.S. Ambassador Amos Hochstein said in Beirut that a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon is “within our reach,” but ultimately it is “a decision of the parties.
Israel and Lebanon on the verge of a ceasefire agreement - Axios25.11.24, 09:49
He met with Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, Hezbollah's representative in the talks, and said that “constructive” and “very good discussions were held to narrow down differences.
The U.S.-backed proposal aims to achieve a 60-day cessation of hostilities, which some hope could form the basis for a lasting truce.
On Sunday, CNN analyst and Axios reporter Barak Ravid quoted a source as saying that on Saturday, Hochstein told the Israeli ambassador to Washington that if Israel did not respond positively in the coming days to the ceasefire proposal, he would withdraw from mediation efforts.