Trump Extends Israel-Lebanon Ceasefire Three Weeks After U.S.-Mediated Talks in Washington

Donald Trump announced on Thursday, April 23, that the temporary ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon would be extended by three weeks after negotiations resumed in Washington under American mediation.

RFI said the ceasefire was due to expire on Sunday and that, despite the extension, the Israeli army and Hezbollah continued to clash.

Al Jazeera

The same day, France 24 reported that Trump announced the three-week extension following a high level White House meeting attended by the Lebanese and Israeli ambassadors to discuss cementing the truce.

RFI also said Lebanese leaders accused Israel of committing a war crime after the death of journalist Amal Khalil in an Israeli airstrike in the south of the country.

France 24 added that Trump wrote on Truth Social that the United States will work with Lebanon to help it defend itself from Hezbollah, while the ceasefire’s extension maintained its hold on the Strait of Hormuz.

RFI said Lebanese leaders accused Israel of having committed a war crime after the death of journalist Amal Khalil in an Israeli airstrike in the south of the country.

In parallel, RFI reported that Hezbollah announced on Thursday that it had fired rockets at northern Israel in response to violations of the ceasefire by the Israeli army in southern Lebanon.

Al-Monitor

yalibnan reported that Israel maintained that no further progress could be made without the disarmament of Hezbollah, while a senior Lebanese official told Reuters that his country first wanted “a ceasefire that Israel implements.”

yalibnan also quoted Israeli Ambassador Yechiel Leiter telling i24 News’ Mike Wagenheim on Wednesday that “We’re not going to let the process standstill, but we’re not going to be able to implement the peace that we signed unless the second track is fulfilled, which is the dismantlement of Hezbollah.”

yalibnan further said the current U.S.-brokered ceasefire was set to expire Sunday and that Israel continued demolishing entire villages in southern Lebanon while retaining forces in a belt of Lebanese territory it had deemed a buffer zone.

La Croix’s recap on Thursday, April 23, said Donald Trump would meet with representatives of Lebanon and Israel during a second round of talks at the White House.

La Croix also reported that an Israeli strike killed three in the Nabatieh District, more than 30 kilometers north of Israel in southern Lebanon, while another strike in Yater, more than 4 kilometers north of Israel, wounded two, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.

France 24 said the ceasefire had seen a clear decrease in violence, though attacks continued in southern Lebanon where Israeli forces imposed a unilateral buffer zone.

yalibnan described the stakes for the Lebanese delegation as President Joseph Aoun faced pressure back home after directly engaging with Israel in the U.S.-mediated talks, which Hezbollah and members of parliament aligned with the group opposed.

In the same account, yalibnan said the White House spokesperson told NatSec Daily that President Donald Trump believes both sides want peace and share a common goal of eradicating Hezbollah, while the ceasefire’s expiration Sunday kept negotiations urgent.