WASHINGTON, United States, June 27, (v7n) – Lebanon, Israel, and the United States on Friday signed a trilateral framework agreement aimed at paving the way for a peace deal between the two long-time Middle East adversaries. The agreement includes a pilot effort for Lebanese soldiers to take control of two areas occupied by Israel, as well as a process aimed at disarming Hezbollah, and is the result of five rounds of talks in the US capital.
"The deal begins to put in place a framework for lasting peace and security," said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the signing ceremony, noting: "It's the beginning of the beginning. There's a lot of work ahead." Lebanon's ambassador to Washington, Nada Hamadeh Moawad, said the accord "is a first step on the road to restoring Lebanese sovereignty and territorial integrity, securing a permanent and final cessation of hostilities, enabling our people to go back to their land." Israel's US envoy, Yechiel Leiter, declared: "Iran is out, Hezbollah is out, and the road to peace between Israel and Lebanon is in."
Hezbollah drew Lebanon into the broader Middle East war on March 2 with rocket fire aimed at Israel to avenge the killing of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in US-Israeli strikes. Israel responded with heavy airstrikes and a ground invasion, and its troops continue to occupy swaths of southern Lebanon, conducting extensive demolition of homes and other buildings.
According to the agreement's text, released late Friday by the State Department, Israel and Lebanon "declare their intent to conclusively end the conflict, address its underlying causes, and to therewith formally conclude any state of war between them." It establishes a process for the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) to restore "sovereign authority over all Lebanese territory," pending the "verified disarmament of non-state armed groups," particularly Hezbollah, which in turn would allow the Israeli Defense Forces to "progressively redeploy out of the Lebanese territory."
Despite the deal, major differences remain. Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem insisted earlier Friday that Israel has "no option but to withdraw completely from every inch of our Lebanese land" and "must leave unconditionally." Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, said in a pre-recorded video that Israel has no plans to exit Lebanon until Hezbollah gives up its weapons.
Prior to the text's release, Netanyahu said Israel's military would allow the Lebanese army to take control of "two pilot areas"—one south of the Litani River and another north of it. The text states that "the LAF will assume full and effective security responsibility in these zones, internationally supported reconstruction efforts will begin, and Lebanese civilians will be able to safely return to these areas."
Rubio added that the agreement establishes a "clear and structured process" to disarm Hezbollah and its infrastructure, as well as a US-facilitated military working group to help implement the deal. Washington will commit $100 million in humanitarian assistance in coordination with the UN and reimburse Lebanon's army $30 million to "improve the capability and capacity" of its forces.
UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher hailed the agreement, calling the signing "a moment of hope and opportunity." Under US pressure, Lebanese and Israeli officials began direct talks in April in Washington, with a truce announced on April 17 that ultimately failed to stop the fighting. A new but very fragile ceasefire was declared this month as Tehran insisted Lebanon must be included in its deal with Washington to end the broader war. The conflict has displaced more than one million Lebanese and left over 4,200 dead, according to Lebanese authorities.
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