Hezbollah Rejects Israel-Lebanon Ceasefire, Demands Israeli Withdrawal After Strikes Kill Four

Hezbollah rejected the latest ceasefire agreement between Israel and the Lebanese government, demanding a complete Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon as Israeli strikes killed at least four people and a U.N. peacekeeper was killed in the crossfire.

“Israel, Lebanon agree to implement ceasefire Israel and Lebanon agreed Wednesday to implement a ceasefire, according to a joint statement released on Wednesday following trilateral negotiations in Washington”

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Hezbollah leader Naim Kassem, in a written statement read on TV, called the negotiations “absurd, humiliating and insulting.”

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Kassem said the agreement’s demand that Hezbollah fighters leave southern Lebanon under fire would mean “surrender, defeat and achieving the enemy’s goals.”

The AP reported that drone alert sirens sounded in several border communities in northern Israel, including Shlomi, after Hezbollah’s statement, and the Israeli military later said the sirens were triggered by attempts to intercept drones that hit near soldiers in southern Lebanon.

The fighting in Lebanon, where Israeli forces have seized large swaths of the south, threatens efforts to end the Iran war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a key transit point for oil and gas whose closure has jolted the world economy.

In Washington, Al Jazeera reported that Israel and Lebanon agreed to implement a ceasefire requiring a “complete cessation” of fire by Hezbollah, and the joint statement also called for “pilot zones” where the Lebanese armed forces would take exclusive control of territory to the exclusion of all non-state actors.

Al Jazeera also quoted its correspondent Manuel Rapalo saying, “The fact that Hezbollah, as a group, has not been part of this negotiation makes them kind of a wild card.”

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Hezbollah’s official response was pending, but an AFP official response relayed by Al Jazeera said the group had informed Lebanese authorities that it had rejected the ceasefire, with the position passed on to Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri.

In a separate framing, the Guardian reported that Hezbollah’s leader Naim Qassem called the plan a “roadmap to annihilate part of the Lebanese people,” and demanded a complete ceasefire and withdrawal of Israeli troops from Lebanon.

The Guardian added that Israel’s defence minister Israel Katz said his country’s military will continue operations in Lebanon and will not be withdrawing from the country, while also stating that hundreds of thousands of Lebanese residents forced from their homes would not be allowed to return.

The ceasefire dispute is unfolding alongside continued strikes and casualties in Lebanon, including a Serbian peacekeeper killed when a mortar struck the UNIFIL base near Marjayoun, according to the U.N. mission in southern Lebanon known as UNIFIL and the Serbian Defense Ministry.

“Israel and Lebanon have agreed to implement a ceasefire that would require a “complete cessation” of fire by Hezbollah, according to a joint statement after US-led talks in Washington, DC”

Al Jazeera

DW reported that UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the killing of the Serbian peacekeeper and wrote, “Seven peacekeepers serving with UNIFIL have now been killed & several more have been wounded since the escalation in hostilities since March this year.”

DW also said the ceasefire was already under pressure as Israeli airstrikes continued in southern Lebanon just hours after the deal was confirmed, while Hezbollah rejected the terms and demanded a “comprehensive” ceasefire.

CBS News reported that Israel’s defense minister said the ceasefire agreement grants the Israeli military the “freedom” to strike Beirut if Hezbollah attacks Israeli communities, while also stating that Israeli operations in southern Lebanon would continue and that the population would not return.

With the ceasefire contested and negotiations continuing, Al Jazeera reported that both sides will meet for more talks the week of June 22 “with a view towards reaching a comprehensive agreement,” while Lebanese President Joseph Aoun described the latest negotiations as a “last opportunity.”