In light of the continued escalation on the ground in southern Lebanon despite the ceasefire being in effect, sources in the US administration revealed that Washington asked Israel for restraint, in an attempt to pave the way for the diplomatic path and prevent the collapse of the agreement.
Axios quoted American officials as saying that Hezbollah seeks to undermine the agreement through escalation, at a time when they, along with Lebanese officials, expressed serious fears of the collapse of the truce before its expected end date in mid-May.
According to the report, Washington is working to advance a new political path that includes strengthening the capabilities of the Lebanese army, in parallel with the escalation of tension between the Lebanese leadership and Hezbollah, amid an exchange of accusations between the two parties.
In the same context, the US administration is seeking to organize a tripartite summit bringing together Donald Trump, Benjamin Netanyahu, and Joseph Aoun, but its holding is still dependent on field and political developments, in light of the continuation of military operations.
In parallel, Trump revealed in an interview with Axios that he had daily contacts with Netanyahu during the current week, noting that the latter stressed the need to expand military operations against Hezbollah. Trump added: “I told Netanyahu that the response should be more focused, without destroying buildings, because that would harm Israel’s image.”
Last Thursday, Trump announced the extension of the ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel for a period of 3 weeks, after it had entered into force on April 17, following a round of talks in the White House between the ambassadors of the two countries, but violations are still continuing.
It is noteworthy that the war in the region spread to Lebanon on March 2, after Hezbollah launched missiles towards Israel, in response to the killing of Iranian guide Ali Khamenei on the first day of the American-Israeli attack on Iran on February 28. This was followed by a massive Israeli air strike campaign on Lebanon, including ground operations in the south, with the continued presence of Israeli forces in those areas despite the entry into force of the truce.
