Netanyahu suggests his cabinet approve ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah

Israeli Prime Minister to present a ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah to Israeli cabinet, ITV News’ Senior International Correspondent John Irvine reports

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would recommend his cabinet to accept a US-brokered ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah.

This comes after Israel’s security cabinet voted to approve a ceasefire agreement in Lebanon early Tuesday.

In his statement broadcast on television, Netanyahu said that he would submit the ceasefire agreement to the approval of the entire cabinet and lay the groundwork for the end of the conflicts that lasted approximately 14 months.

The proposed ceasefire calls for a 60-day halt in fighting to allow Hezbollah militants to head north.

Israel’s military forces would advance southwards and eventually withdraw completely from Lebanon.

While southern Lebanon becomes a border buffer zone with UN peacekeepers and Lebanese troops stationed there, Hezbollah will have to remain north of the Litani River.

Israel says it retains the right to attack if Hezbollah violates the terms of the agreement.

Following Israel’s attack, Netanyahu said Hezbollah was “no longer the same” and listed three main reasons why he is now seeking a ceasefire.

The first, Netanyahu said, was to let Israel “focus on the Iranian threat.”

The second is to replenish the country’s “military forces and equipment”, which he said were depleted partly due to “delays” in arms supplies. The third is to isolate Hamas in Gaza.

The ceasefire is believed to come into force from 8am (GMT) on Wednesday.

According to information obtained by ITV News, US President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron are expected to make statements later on Tuesday.

Israel and Lebanon’s militant group Hezbollah have been opening cross-border fire almost daily since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023.

Two months ago, Israel escalated its attack on Lebanon, carrying out large-scale bombardment followed by a ground attack.

At least 3,500 people have been killed in Lebanon, most of them civilians, according to the country’s health ministry.

More than 70 people were killed in Israel, including 40 civilians. Additionally, more than 50 Israeli soldiers were killed in the ground attack.

Hundreds of thousands of people on both sides of the border were evacuated from their homes and abandoned their daily lives in search of safety.

Why did ceasefire talks take so long?

Despite the enormous human losses caused by the war, the path to a solution was marred by deadlocked negotiations.

For more than a year, mediators from around the world have tried to end the regional conflict, but negotiations have been continually stalled as the warring parties show no signs of backing down.

The international community has regularly pressed for the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which was adopted in 2006 to end a month-long war between Israel and Hezbollah but was never fully enacted.

While Hezbollah never ended its presence in southern Lebanon, Lebanon said Israel regularly violated its airspace and occupied small parts of its territory.

One of the main points of contention between Lebanon and Israel has been the understanding of Resolution 1707.

Two Western diplomats had previously reported that Israel wanted more guarantees to ensure the removal of Hezbollah’s weapons from the border area.

Concerned about the possibility of Hezbollah launching an attack like the one Hamas carried out from Gaza into southern Israel, Israeli officials said they would not accept a ceasefire agreement that did not explicitly grant them the freedom to launch attacks in Lebanon if they believed Hezbollah would carry out that attack. violates.

Lebanese officials said accepting such a deal would violate Lebanon’s sovereignty. Hezbollah leader Naim Kassem said the militant group would not accept a deal that did not “put a complete and comprehensive end to the aggression” and protect Lebanon’s sovereignty.

Lebanon and Israel also disagreed over which countries would take part in the international committee that oversees the implementation of the agreement and Resolution 1701.

What does the ceasefire mean for Gaza and the rest of the Middle East?

The ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, the most powerful of Iran’s armed proxies, is expected to significantly calm regional tensions that have led to fears of direct war between Israel and Iran.

Hezbollah had long insisted that it would not agree to a ceasefire until the war in Gaza ended, but has now withdrawn that condition.

There is no direct recognition of how the Hezbollah-Israel ceasefire will affect Gaza.

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