Under the mediation of the United States and France, Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon have reached an agreement, formally ending more than a year of conflict. The ceasefire agreement took effect on Wednesday, November 27.
Assistance in maintaining the ceasefire agreement, the Lebanese military said in a statement that they are preparing to deploy troops to southern Lebanon.
According to the agreement, Israeli forces will withdraw from about 6 kilometers inside Lebanese territory. The Lebanese military has requested residents of border villages to wait until the Israeli forces have withdrawn before returning to their homes.
In the war-torn villages of Lebanon, some displaced families who had to rent alternative accommodations have been facing economic pressure from paying rent. Some of them told Reuters that they hope to avoid paying additional rent.
“Force must give way to dialogue and negotiation,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot told French radio, “which has already been achieved in Lebanon and must also be achieved quickly in the Gaza Strip.”
On Tuesday, shortly after the ceasefire agreement was approved by a 10-1 vote in the Israeli security cabinet, President Biden spoke at the White House.
Biden stated that he had confirmed the ceasefire at 2 a.m. Greenwich Mean Time through phone calls with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati.
“This (agreement) is designed to permanently halt hostile actions,” Biden said, “the residual forces of Hezbollah and other terrorist organizations will not be allowed to threaten Israel’s security again.”
Biden also mentioned that after the Lebanese army takes control of the territories near the border with Israel, Israel will gradually withdraw within 60 days to ensure that Hezbollah does not reestablish infrastructure at those locations after the costly war.
The United States government is also pushing for a ceasefire in Gaza, and normalization of relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel is also possible, Biden added.
Hezbollah has not officially commented on the ceasefire, but its senior official Hassan Fadlallah told Lebanon’s Al-Jadeed TV that while Hezbollah supports extending Lebanon’s authority, the organization will become stronger due to this war.
Hezbollah’s allies, including Iran, Hamas, and the Houthi armed group attacking Israel from Yemen, welcomed the ceasefire agreement.
Lebanese Prime Minister Mikati welcomed the ceasefire agreement. Lebanon’s Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib stated that with the withdrawal of Israeli forces, the Lebanese army will deploy at least 5,000 soldiers in southern Lebanon.
Netanyahu said he is ready to implement the ceasefire but will respond firmly to any violations of the agreement by Hezbollah.
He noted that the ceasefire would allow Israel to focus on countering the threat from Iran, give the military an opportunity to rest and replenish supplies, and isolate the Islamic extremist organization Hamas.
Israel inflicted heavy damage on the Iran-backed Hezbollah and Hamas militants during the year-long conflict.
Netanyahu stated, “We have set back Hezbollah by decades, eliminated its top leaders, destroyed most of its rockets and missiles, rendered thousands of fighters combat ineffective, and cleared the infrastructure used for terrorist attacks near our borders.”
In a closed-door briefing, a senior U.S. official mentioned that the United States, along with France, will join a peacekeeping mechanism in cooperation with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) to prevent potential violations of the ceasefire agreement alongside the Lebanese army. The official stated that the United States would not deploy combat troops.
Just hours before the ceasefire, Israel intensified airstrikes on Beirut and other areas in Lebanon. The Israeli military said they targeted “components of Hezbollah’s financial management and system,” including a currency exchange office. Meanwhile, Hezbollah continued launching rocket attacks toward Israel in the remaining hours.
On October 8, 2023, Hezbollah began firing rockets into Israel, a day after Hamas launched terror attacks in southern Israel. Over the past year, the two sides have been engaged in continuous fighting.
(Adapted from reports by Reuters)