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Ceasefire extended 45 days
Israel and Lebanon agreed to extend their ceasefire by 45 days after talks in Washington, with the US State Department saying the “April 16 cessation of hostilities will be extended by 45 days to enable further progress.”
“The April 16 cessation of hostilities will be extended by 45 days to enable further progress”
The extension was announced after two “productive” days of negotiations, and the US said political talks would continue on June 2 and June 3 while a “security track” would begin on May 29 at the Pentagon.
Even as negotiations concluded, Israel carried out strikes in Lebanon, including attacks in the Tyre district that Lebanon’s health ministry said wounded at least 37 people, including six hospital personnel, nine women and four children.
The Guardian reported that Israel’s military issued evacuation orders for the southern city of Tyre, where it said it was hitting Hezbollah infrastructure, and an AFP correspondent reported strikes including two near Tyre.
In the same period, Al Jazeera said Israel launched new attacks on Lebanon on Friday, killing at least seven people in the south, according to the Lebanese state news agency NNA.
Pigott, Leiter, Salam react
US State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott framed the talks as “highly-productive,” saying “We hope these discussions will advance lasting peace between the two countries, full recognition of each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and establishing genuine security along their shared border.”
Israel’s ambassador to Washington, Yechiel Leiter, described the negotiations as “frank and constructive,” and he wrote on X that “There will be ups and downs, but the potential for success is great.”
Lebanon’s Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said he hoped to “mobilise all Arab and international support to bolster our position in the negotiations” with Israel, while also telling an NGO dinner that Lebanon had had “enough of these reckless adventures serving foreign projects or interests.”
Al Jazeera reported that Lebanon sent Presidential Special Envoy Simon Karam while Israel’s Deputy National Security Adviser Yossi Draznin attended, and it said Lebanon has refused a meeting between President Joseph Aoun and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The BBC added that Lebanon’s health ministry said Israeli air strikes had killed 22 people, including eight children, across the south on Wednesday, as Israel and Lebanon agreed the extension and the US said it would reconvene the political track in June.
Casualties and next steps
The ceasefire extension came amid continued casualties, with the BBC reporting that at least 2,896 people have been killed in Lebanon since March 2, according to the health ministry, and Israeli authorities saying 18 soldiers and four civilians have been killed over the same period.
“At least 2,896 people have been killed in Lebanon since then”
Al Jazeera said the Lebanese Ministry of Health put the death toll at 2,951 people killed in Israeli attacks since March 2, while also reporting that Israel lost 20 troops including another soldier killed in fighting with Hezbollah on Friday.
In Tyre district, the Guardian said Lebanon’s health ministry reported strikes wounded at least 37 people, and it also described one strike “levelled” a primary healthcare centre and damaged the neighbouring Hiram hospital, wounding six medical staff members.
The US said the next phase would include negotiations on June 2 and June 3, and it also said a “security track” would begin on May 29 at the Pentagon with Lebanese and Israeli military delegations.
DW reported that Lebanon’s negotiating delegation in Washington welcomed the outcome and said the extension and the US-facilitated security track provided “critical breathing space for our citizens,” while Israel’s ambassador to the US, Yechiel Leiter, said on X that “What will be paramount throughout negotiations is the security of our citizens and our soldiers.”
