Israel’s UN ambassador says Lebanon ceasefire deal is close
The Israeli ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, has said that a ceasefire deal that would end the fighting with Hezbollah in Lebanon had not been finalised, but was close.
“We haven’t finalised it yet, but we are moving forward,” Danon said, after news outlets reported that a deal had been agreed. Reuters said that the Israeli prime minister’s office had “nothing to say about the report” when approached for comment.
However, an unnamed senior Israeli official told Reuters that Israel’s security cabinet would convene on Tuesday to approve a Lebanon ceasefire deal.
Danon gave details on what he said a ceasefire deal would look like, saying that Israel had learned lessons from its 2006 war with Hezbollah. “We will make sure we will have the ability to neutralise any threat from southern Lebanon,” Danon said. “I hope the Lebanese army will take care of that in the future. But if they fail again, we will be there.”
Danon also said that the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) would stay in southern Lebanon following any deal. “We would coordinate with UNIFIL, and I expect they would be more effective this time. We don’t expect them to fight, but we expect them to report,” he said.
‘No obstacles’ to begin implementing US-proposed truce in Lebanon: Deputy speaker
Lebanon’s deputy speaker of parliament, Elias Bou Saab, tells Reuters there are “no serious obstacles” left to begin the implementation of a US-proposed, 60-day truce between Israel and Hezbollah.
Bou Saab said the proposal included a 60-day timeline for Israeli forces to withdraw from Lebanese territory, giving time for the Lebanese army to deploy in southern Lebanon.
He said one sticking point on who would monitor the ceasefire had been resolved in the past 24 hours by agreeing to set up a five-country committee, including France and chaired by the United States.
A Lebanese official and Western diplomat told Reuters the US had informed Lebanese officials a ceasefire could be announced “within hours”.
The Western diplomat said another main sticking point had been the sequencing of Israel’s withdrawal, the Lebanese army’s deployment and the return of displaced Lebanese to their homes in southern Lebanon.
Momentum on Lebanon ceasefire increases: German foreign minister
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock says the momentum on the Lebanon ceasefire talks seems to have picked up and they are now closer than they were a few days or weeks ago.
“We are currently discussing with our partners from the Gulf states and the Arab world how we can in this situation at least perhaps resolve one of the major challenges, the situation in Lebanon, and finally achieve a ceasefire,” she said on the sidelines of a Group of Seven (G7) meeting in Italy.
“The momentum now seems to be closer than it was a few days or even a few weeks ago.”
