The Israeli Foreign Minister spoke on Monday of “some progress” towards a ceasefire in Lebanon, a prospect that his Defense colleague later ruled out before the capitulation of the Islamist terrorist group Hezbollah.
“There is some progress,” said Gideon Saar, when asked about the prospects of such a truce. “We are working on the subject with the Americans,” he added during a press conference in Jerusalem.
However, he made a ceasefire conditional on the satisfaction of Israeli demands, namely that “Hezbollah (can) no longer arm itself” and that the Shiite terrorist group be pushed back a good distance from the Israeli-Lebanese border.
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For his part, Defense Minister Israel Katz, a few hours later, ruled out a truce until the “capitulation” of Hezbollah.
“There will be no cease-fire and there will be no pause in the strikes against Hezbollah,” he said, addressing, for the first time since taking office, before the general staff of the Israeli army.
But if there is a proposed ceasefire agreement “meaning the capitulation of Hezbollah (and) meeting all our conditions (…), we will certainly consider it very seriously,” he added.
Foreign Minister Gideon Saar (R) and Defense Minister Israel Katz at the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem on November 10, 2024. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
In mid-September, the Israeli army launched a major military offensive against the Lebanese movement allied with Iran.
In the preceding months, clashes on the border between Israel and Lebanon were almost daily.
Hezbollah said it was opening a “support front” in solidarity with the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, today devastated by the campaign of military reprisals launched by Israel in response to the unprecedented attack perpetrated on its soil by the Hamas on October 7, 2023.
For Mr. Saar, in the event of a truce, “the main challenge will be to enforce what has been agreed.”
The Israeli government repeatedly repeats that it has no confidence in the UN to enforce such an agreement, and several senior Israeli officials have pleaded for Israel to retain full latitude for action in Lebanon in the future. to enforce its conditions.
Since the start of clashes between Hezbollah and the Israeli army more than a year ago, tens of thousands of residents, both in Lebanon and in Israel, have been forced to leave their homes.
Several attempts at mediation between Israel and Lebanon have taken place, including via the United States and France, but none came to fruition.
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