Israeli Strikes Kill At Least 32 In Lebanon, Threatening US-Iran Talks In Switzerland

Israeli strikes in Lebanon killed at least 32 people despite a ceasefire being in place, threatening to derail talks between the United States and Iran aimed at cementing a fragile peace process.

“JD Vance departs for Switzerland as White House looks to get talks with Iran back on track TYRE, Lebanon -- U”

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Al Jazeera reported that there had been more than 100 Israeli air strikes on southern Lebanon since midnight, with civilians among those killed and wounded in Tyre.

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Lebanon’s civil defence agency said Israeli strikes in the Nabatieh district killed 16 people and wounded 12 on Saturday, while Lebanon’s National News Agency said a Lebanese soldier was killed in an Israeli attack on the village of Kfar Reman.

The violence complicated planned follow-up talks between Iran and the US on the memorandum of understanding, with Pakistan’s foreign ministry saying the talks would be held in Burgenstock, Switzerland, on Sunday.

Lebanese member of parliament Najat Aoun Saliba told Al Jazeera that people in Lebanon are tired and have had enough of the killing and destruction, adding that it is “also costing us [the government] a lot of money and a lot of pain.”

In a statement carried by The Guardian, national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said, “All of Lebanon must burn,” after Hezbollah killed four Israeli soldiers and Israel carried out retaliatory airstrikes in south Lebanon and the Bekaa valley.

Al Jazeera

The Guardian said the US looked forward to “beginning technical talks as soon as possible” after the talks were called off, while the BBC reported that Switzerland’s foreign ministry later confirmed the talks at the Burgenstock mountaintop resort had been “postponed.”

The BBC also quoted Israeli military spokesperson Brig Gen Effie Defrin confirming, “We are in a ceasefire,” as an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah came into force at 16:00 local time.

The AP said the interim agreement to end the Iran war had already reopened the Strait of Hormuz, but that the accord faced threats “chiefly from Lebanon,” where fighting led to a delay in the start of talks planned for Friday in Switzerland.

“Israel and Hezbollah agree to halt fighting, officials say, as US-Iran talks hang in the balance Israel and Hezbollah agree to halt fighting, officials say, as US-Iran talks hang in the balance JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel and the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group agreed Friday to halt the heavy fighting in southern Lebanon that had threatened to unravel an interim agreement between the United States and Iran to end their war, officials said”

AP News

The BBC said the deal included reopening the Strait of Hormuz, a requirement that Iran will never have a nuclear weapon, and a $300bn (£224bn) plan for Iran’s “reconstruction,” while also binding both sides to achieving a final deal in a “maximum” of 60 days.

AP reported that Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to keep Israeli forces in southern Lebanon until the threat is eliminated, while Hezbollah refused to halt its attacks unless Israel commits to withdrawing from Lebanon, which Iran says is also a condition of the deal.

In the same reporting, the BBC said Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei approved the deal with the US despite having a “different view,” while President Trump responded that “We didn’t meet out of desperation, Iran did. They are FINISHED!”