Israel and Hezbollah agree to ceasefire – Reuters

Israel and Hezbollah have agreed to a ceasefire starting on Friday, Reuters has claimed, citing an unnamed US official and “two Hezbollah officials.” However, no official confirmation has been made by either the Israel Defense Forces or the militant group as of yet.

According to the US official who spoke to Reuters, negotiators for the US and Qatar worked out the deal with help from Iran. “We understand that after the exchange of fire earlier today, Israel and Hezbollah are now in a ceasefire,” he added.

The American-Iranian memo of understanding signed earlier this week states that the war should be terminated on all fronts, including in Lebanon. However, Israel has continued its strikes on its neighbor, killing at least 18 people only Friday night, the country’s health ministry said earlier.

Read more

War without end? How Israel became trapped in its own security doctrine

Earlier today, Lebanese Hezbollah lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah told Reuters that Iran had informed the group that talks with Washington could not continue without the implementation of a comprehensive ceasefire.

He also called on the Lebanese government to reject any direct negotiations with Israel while Israeli attacks on Lebanon continue.

Hezbollah not only functions as a militant group, it is also as a political party and social welfare provider; however, it is at odds with the Lebanese government. In March, Lebanon’s government took the unprecedented step of banning Hezbollah’s military and security activity.

The group is represented in both the government and parliament. The move came hours after it announced it had launched rockets and drones towards Israel to avenge the killing of Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei in US-Israeli attacks.

According to Asharq Al-Awsat sources, the Shiite political alliance is now divided over how to deal with Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam’s government, which took the decision. While one faction, described as hardline, favors changing the government, another believes current political conditions make such a move unrealistic because of parliamentary arithmetic: priority should instead be given to securing an Israeli withdrawal and rebuilding devastated towns.