A Hezbollah official said on Wednesday that any US-brokered ceasefire deal between the group and Israel must end fighting swiftly and must preserve Lebanon's sovereignty, an apparent reference to Israel's stance that it will keep striking the Iran-backed group even with a truce in place.
Speaking to Hezbollah media, Mahmoud Qmati said that he was neither overly optimistic nor overly pessimistic about the prospects of a truce.
The US proposal could see Israeli ground forces leave Lebanon and Hezbollah militants withdraw away from the Israeli border. More Lebanese army troops and UN peacekeepers would be sent to a buffer zone in southern Lebanon as part of the deal.
But CNN has reported that an Israeli source familiar with the talks cast doubt on the likelihood of an imminent deal, noting that Hezbollah’s refusal to accept Israel’s demand for the right to strike the group in the event of a ceasefire violation could jeopardize the process. Without this clause, the source said, it was uncertain whether Israel’s prime minister could get cabinet approval for the agreement.
Hezbollah began firing rockets into northern Israel the day after the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023 in what it said was solidarity with the Palestinians. Israel launched retaliatory airstrikes, and all-out war erupted in September.
Israeli bombardment has killed more than 3,500 people in Lebanon and wounded almost 15,000, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry. It also displaced nearly 1.2 million, or a quarter of Lebanon’s population. On the Israeli side, 87 soldiers and 50 civilians have been killed by rockets, drones and missiles, and tens of thousands of Israelis have been evacuated from homes near the border.
Hezbollah said its chief Sheikh Naim Qassem would give a speech Wednesday, a day after cancelling a similar announcement.
A statement from the group announced the speech by Qassem would be "today," without specifying a time.
