Israel’s cabinet will meet to discuss approving a ceasefire to temporarily end fighting with the Lebanese Hezbollah militia.
The proposed agreement will reportedly be the first to last 60 days and include the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Lebanon, according to media reports.
In return, Hezbollah will end its presence south of the Litani River, about 30 kilometers (18 miles) north of the international border, and be replaced by Lebanese troops.
Even as diplomats suggested on Monday that a deal was close, heavy fighting continued, with Lebanese authorities reporting at least 31 dead during Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon and Hezbollah firing rockets into Israel.
The ministers are expected to vote on the agreement during a meeting on Tuesday, according to Haaretz. Reuters news agency quoted a senior Israeli official as saying that the meeting was aimed at approving the text of the agreement.
The news agency also reported four Lebanese sources as saying that the US and France – Lebanon’s long-time allies – were expected to announce a ceasefire soon.
According to Israel’s Channel 12, the potential deal includes:
- The end of the shootout
- The IDF presence in Lebanon is up to 60 days
- The Lebanese army replaces the IDF as it withdraws
- There is no Israeli-occupied buffer zone in southern Lebanon
- The US chaired a five-nation committee set up to monitor the implementation of the ceasefire
- The Lebanese government oversees the purchase and production of weapons in the country
In addition, the US will issue a letter recognizing Israel’s right to attack Lebanon if Hezbollah appears to be violating the agreement.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is said to have approved the deal “in principle”. The deputy speaker of Lebanon’s parliament, Elias Bou Saab, told Reuters that there are now “no serious obstacles” to a ceasefire “unless Netanyahu changes his mind”.
The French Presidency said on Monday evening that the talks had made “great progress” and urged Israel and Hezbollah to “seize this opportunity immediately”.
“We believe we have reached this point where we are close,” said US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby. But he added: “We’re not there yet.”
But Israel’s national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, spoke out and called for a ceasefire.
He said Israel must continue the war until “total victory”, and, speaking to Netanyahu at X, he said: “It is not too late to stop this deal!”
Lebanese authorities have said any ceasefire should be limited to the terms of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel.
The decision includes the withdrawal of Hezbollah troops and weapons from the areas between the Blue Line – the unofficial border between Lebanon and Israel – and the Litani River, about 30 kilometers (18 miles) from the Israeli border.
Israel says that has never been fully respected, while Lebanon says Israel’s violations include military airstrikes over Lebanese territory.
Although talks between Israel and Hezbollah appear to be bearing fruit, similar talks to end the war in Gaza have been stalled for months. This month, Qatar withdrew from its role as a mediator between Israel and Hamas, the Palestinian terrorist group Israel is fighting in Gaza.
The war in Lebanon began on October 8 last year when Hezbollah fired rockets into Israel in support of a deadly attack by Hamas the previous day.
Israel’s stated goal is to allow the return of approximately 60,000 civilians who were displaced from northern Israel due to Hezbollah attacks.
In September, Israel began a major military escalation against the militia, destroying its infrastructure and weapons, and killing its leader Hassan Nasrallah and other top officials.
In Lebanon, more than 3,750 people have been killed and at least 15,600 injured since October 2023, according to the Lebanese authorities, and more than a million have been forced from their homes.
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