Israel, Lebanon agree to renew ceasefire after talks with US: How it affects US Iran talks | World

Israel and Lebanon have agreed to renew a ceasefire and establish several pilot security zones in southern Lebanon where Hezbollah militants would be prohibited from operating.

The agreement was announced in a joint statement following a fourth round of US-mediated talks at the State Department. Both sides said the ceasefire depends on a complete halt to Hezbollah attacks and the withdrawal of all Hezbollah personnel from areas south of the Litani River.

Ceasefire conditions

Details of how the security zones will be implemented were not immediately released. Under the agreement, however, the Lebanese Armed Forces will assume full control of those areas.

“These steps will enable progress toward a comprehensive peace and security agreement,” the joint statement said.

The statement also emphasised that the future relationship between Israel and Lebanon should be determined solely by their sovereign governments, rejecting efforts by any state or non-state actor to influence Lebanon’s future.

The remark appeared aimed at Iran, which backs Hezbollah and has argued that an end to Israeli strikes in Lebanon should form part of a broader understanding with the United States on regional security issues.

Hezbollah was not involved in the Israel-Lebanon negotiations.

Ceasefire effect on Iran talks

The Israel-Lebanon ceasefire appears designed in part to remove a major obstacle to broader negotiations involving Iran.

Before the agreement, Iranian officials and media close to the government said Tehran had suspended communications with mediators because Israel was continuing military operations against Hezbollah in Lebanon. Iran insisted that any wider ceasefire arrangement had to include Lebanon and that Israeli attacks there needed to stop before talks could continue.

Reports by Fars and Tasnim, news agencies closely associated with Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, come as Tehran continues to argue that the conflict in Lebanon is linked to broader ceasefire negotiations with the United States over the regional war.

Israel and the United States, however, maintain that the fighting in Lebanon is separate from the Iran-related talks.

The agreement could create conditions for Iran to re-engage with mediators and resume broader discussions with the United States. However, there is no confirmation yet that Tehran has formally returned to the negotiating process. Iranian officials have linked their participation to the actual enforcement of the Lebanon ceasefire, not merely its announcement.

Also read: Trump says he will probably meet Ayatollah at some point