US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday announced a framework agreement between Israel and Lebanon following several days of talks in Washington.
“We are happy to announce a framework agreement between the sovereign government of Lebanon and, of course, the government of Israel, with a mediation and support of the United States of America,” Rubio said at the signing ceremony.
He added that the agreement “begins to put in place a framework for lasting peace and security.”
The US-mediated talks aimed at ending the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, an Iran-backed Shiite militant group in Lebanon.
Lebanon was drawn into the Middle East war on March 2, when Hezbollah launched rockets into Israel in retaliation for US-Israeli strikes on Iran.
Hezbollah has dismissed the peace initiative and was not part of the US-mediated talks.
What’s in the framework agreement between Lebanon and Israel?
The officials did not share details of the agreement that was signed by Yechiel Leiter, the Israeli ambassador to the United States, and Nada Hamadeh, the ambassador of Lebanon to the United States.
Hamadeh called the framework “a first step on the road to restoring Lebanese sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
Leiter said that “Real peace, where both countries will live in security, where Israel’s and Lebanon’s sovereignty will be respected, honored, and protected.”
The agreement is the result of five rounds of talks in Washington — the first direct political-level talks between the two sides since 1983.
Earlier, Reuters reported that the negotiations included discussions on a proposal for Israeli forces to hand over some of the territory they occupy in southern Lebanon to the Lebanese military.
Israel has maintained what it described as a security buffer zone extending about 10 kilometers (six miles) into southern Lebanon.
More to follow…
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