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Lebanon, Israel to Hold First Direct Talks Next Week

President Joseph Aoun meets with Lebanese chief negotiator Ambassador Simon Karam (File photo: Lebanese Presidency)
President Joseph Aoun meets with Lebanese chief negotiator Ambassador Simon Karam (File photo: Lebanese Presidency)
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Lebanon, Israel to Hold First Direct Talks Next Week

President Joseph Aoun meets with Lebanese chief negotiator Ambassador Simon Karam (File photo: Lebanese Presidency)
President Joseph Aoun meets with Lebanese chief negotiator Ambassador Simon Karam (File photo: Lebanese Presidency)

Lebanon and Israel are set to hold their first round of direct talks in Washington next week aimed at establishing a framework for bilateral negotiations, based on five key demands put forward by Beirut, as Lebanon urges the United States to pressure Israel to uphold the ceasefire agreement.

Official Lebanese sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that Lebanon’s chief negotiator, Ambassador Simon Karam, will take part in the meeting scheduled for next week. Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, a close adviser to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is also expected to attend.

A US State Department official said “representatives of Lebanon and Israel will meet at the US Department of State in Washington next Thursday and Friday.”

The meeting will mark the first direct bilateral negotiations between Lebanon and Israel. It follows two ambassador-level meetings in Washington under US sponsorship.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio attended the first meeting, while the second was held in the Oval Office at the White House in the presence of President Donald Trump.

Lebanese official sources said the meeting would “lay the foundations for negotiations between Lebanon and Israel” and seek to establish a framework agreement. The talks will be held in Washington, while the venue for subsequent sessions has yet to be determined.

The five points insisted upon by Lebanon include consolidating the ceasefire, a full Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon and resolving border disputes, the release of prisoners, the return of displaced residents to their villages, and reconstruction of areas devastated by the war.

The sources said Beirut had asked Washington to pressure Israel to reduce military escalation in Lebanon in preparation for consolidating the ceasefire, which remains the main challenge facing the negotiations, amid an expansion of Israeli military operations and evacuation warnings extending to areas about 40 kilometers (25 miles) from the border.

Israeli strikes also intensified, reaching Beirut’s southern suburbs on Wednesday, where Israel said it had killed the commander of Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force. Beirut and its southern suburbs had previously been considered exempt from bombardment and fighting following the latest ceasefire and US guarantees.

While Lebanon insists on implementing the ceasefire agreement, Israel is seeking to negotiate under military pressure and maintains what it describes as its “right to self-defense” and “freedom of action to thwart planned attacks.”

Since the ceasefire took effect, evacuation warnings have expanded to 61 towns and villages, prompting tens of thousands of southern residents to flee again, while fears of strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs have discouraged residents from returning.

The Lebanese government, which met on Thursday at the Grand Serail, did not discuss negotiations with Israel. Information Minister Paul Morcos said the issue was being coordinated between President Joseph Aoun, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam.

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Arab World

France Says Sending Envoy Back to Algeria to Ease Relations

File Photo: Algeria has suspended its 20-year-old treaty of friendship, good neighborliness and cooperation with Spain. (AFP)
File Photo: Algeria has suspended its 20-year-old treaty of friendship, good neighborliness and cooperation with Spain. (AFP)
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France Says Sending Envoy Back to Algeria to Ease Relations

File Photo: Algeria has suspended its 20-year-old treaty of friendship, good neighborliness and cooperation with Spain. (AFP)
File Photo: Algeria has suspended its 20-year-old treaty of friendship, good neighborliness and cooperation with Spain. (AFP)

Paris will return its ambassador to Algeria and send a senior envoy to ceremonies marking a colonial-era massacre in its former colony to improve frayed relations, the French presidency said on Friday.

Ties between France and Algeria have been fraught since 2024, when Paris officially backed Moroccan sovereignty over the disputed Western Sahara region, where Algeria supports the pro-independence Polisario Front, said AFP.

On Friday, French Deputy Minister of the Armed Forces Alice Rufo will attend ceremonies in Algeria to mark the 1945 violent put-down of pro-democracy protesters by French troops, the Elysee said in a statement.

She will be accompanied by Ambassador Stephane Romatet, who will resume his duties, more than a year after being recalled from his post, it said.

The move by French President Emmanuel Macron "reflects the President of the Republic's determination to address relations between France and Algeria with honesty, while respecting all the memories connected to them" and "to restore an effective dialogue", the Elysee said.

Arab World

Lebanon Civil Defense Says Israeli Strike Kills Rescuer in South

Smoke rises following Israeli bombardment in southern Lebanon as seen from a position across the border in the Upper Galilee in northern Israel on May 7, 2026. (Photo by Jalaa MAREY / AFP)
Smoke rises following Israeli bombardment in southern Lebanon as seen from a position across the border in the Upper Galilee in northern Israel on May 7, 2026. (Photo by Jalaa MAREY / AFP)
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Lebanon Civil Defense Says Israeli Strike Kills Rescuer in South

Smoke rises following Israeli bombardment in southern Lebanon as seen from a position across the border in the Upper Galilee in northern Israel on May 7, 2026. (Photo by Jalaa MAREY / AFP)
Smoke rises following Israeli bombardment in southern Lebanon as seen from a position across the border in the Upper Galilee in northern Israel on May 7, 2026. (Photo by Jalaa MAREY / AFP)

An Israeli strike on south Lebanon killed a member of Lebanon's civil defense, the rescue organization said Friday, a day after another strike killed a rescuer from the Hezbollah-affiliated Islamic Health Committee.

In a statement, the civil defense said their rescuer was killed "as a result of an Israeli strike that targeted him" on the road between two southern towns, despite the truce in effect.

World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Wednesday it had "verified 152 attacks on healthcare that resulted in 103 deaths and 241 injuries" in Lebanon since the war began on March 2.

Arab World

Trump Senior Adviser to Asharq Al-Awsat: No Military Solution in Sudan

Massad Boulos during his participation in the Munich Security Conference in mid-February, from his account on X
Massad Boulos during his participation in the Munich Security Conference in mid-February, from his account on X
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Trump Senior Adviser to Asharq Al-Awsat: No Military Solution in Sudan

Massad Boulos during his participation in the Munich Security Conference in mid-February, from his account on X
Massad Boulos during his participation in the Munich Security Conference in mid-February, from his account on X

Despite the complexity of the situation on the ground in Sudan, Washington still believes the de-escalation effort has a chance of succeeding.

Massad Boulos, senior adviser to President Donald Trump for Arab and African affairs, believes there is no military solution to the conflict that has raged there for years, and stressed the need to end external financial and military support to the warring parties.

In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat that also covered regional developments and the dispute between Egypt and Ethiopia over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, Boulos said a credible path remains available for de-escalation and a lasting settlement. He said that the path should begin with both sides accepting the proposed humanitarian truce without preconditions.

Boulos said all parties in Sudan must meet their obligations, halt hostilities, and allow full, safe, and unhindered humanitarian access. He also said humanitarian aid should not be subject to preconditions or politicized.

Asked about the failure to achieve a breakthrough on a truce, Trump’s senior adviser said responsibility lies with the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese Armed Forces to reach and abide by a humanitarian truce that ends atrocities and eases the immense suffering of the Sudanese people.

He said members of the Quad group (Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United States, and the United Arab Emirates) agree on the need to pursue a negotiated settlement and a steady, and implementable path forward.

He said all parties want to end the atrocities and bring stability to Sudan, especially since there is no viable military solution.

Boulos stressed the need to end external financial and military support to the warring parties.

He said the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese Armed Forces must also halt hostilities, allow unhindered humanitarian access across the country, protect civilians, and take steps toward a negotiated, lasting peace that includes inclusive dialogue.

Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam

On April 20, Boulos visited Cairo, where he met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and discussed several regional issues, including the dispute over Ethiopia’s Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam.

Boulos told Asharq Al-Awsat that, in January 2026, Trump had expressed the United States’ readiness to resume mediation between Egypt and Ethiopia to reach a responsible and final settlement of the dam issue.

He said Washington has supported a diplomatic solution on the Nile River that takes into account the needs of all parties. He added that the United States believes a comprehensive agreement is possible and is ready to support its negotiation and completion.

Egypt announced in 2024 that negotiations with Ethiopia over the dam had stopped after years of talks, citing the absence of political will on the Ethiopian side, according to statements by the Ministry of Irrigation. Addis Ababa says the dam is intended for development and not to harm the two downstream countries.

Eastern Congo crisis

From Sudan and Ethiopia, Boulos turned to eastern Congo, where tensions have escalated for a third year and where Washington is playing a major role in de-escalation. He said there remains a possibility of ending the violent conflict.

Boulos referred to Trump’s comments on the signing of a historic peace agreement between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda, saying it provided, for the first time, a path toward peace to end an extremely violent conflict that has lasted 30 years. He said the effort was not easy.

He expressed deep gratitude for Qatar’s role, in partnership with the United States and other parties, in helping to end the conflict. He also praised close cooperation with other countries working with Washington and Doha, including the recent roles played by the African Union, Togo and Switzerland in supporting the talks.

Boulos said the United States remains deeply concerned about continued violence in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo and is working closely with regional partners to strengthen the ceasefire.

He said Rwanda must end its support for the M23 movement and withdraw from the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, in line with the Washington Agreements.

Speaking about ongoing efforts to resolve the conflict in eastern Congo, Boulos said Washington would continue to use all available tools to ensure both sides meet their obligations. He declined to comment further on the ongoing diplomatic discussions.

Iran war

Trump’s senior adviser for Arab and African affairs criticized Iran, saying there had been no retreat in the US position toward Tehran, particularly on rejecting its possession of a nuclear weapon.

Boulos described Iran as the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism, saying it supports Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis, the Taliban, al-Qaeda and other terrorist networks.

He said the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps is designated by the United States and many other countries, including the European Union, as a foreign terrorist organization, and that several regime leaders have also been designated as terrorists.

Boulos said the US position on Tehran remains clear and unchanged, namely that Iran cannot be allowed to possess a nuclear weapon.

In late February, Israel and the United States launched a war on Iran before Washington announced a truce that began on April 8, with Pakistani mediation aimed at a final halt to the conflict, whose repercussions affected economies around the world.