Israel, Lebanon agree to direct negotiations after ‘productive’ talks: US

WASHINGTON: Israel and Lebanon agreed to hold direct negotiations after “productive discussions” between the two sides in Washington, the United States said on Tuesday.

“The participants held productive discussions on steps toward launching direct negotiations between Israel and Lebanon,” State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott said in a statement.

“All sides agreed to launch direct negotiations at a mutually agreed time and venue,” he said.

The announcement came after Israeli and Lebanese envoys held more than two hours of talks mediated by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

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“The United States congratulated the two countries on this historic milestone and expressed its support for further talks, and for the government of Lebanon’s plans to restore the monopoly of force and to end Iran’s overbearing influence,” Pigott said.

And it “affirmed that any agreement to cease hostilities must be reached between the two governments, brokered by the United States, and not through any separate track,” he added.

Lebanon was pulled into the region-wide Iran war on March 2 after pro-Tehran Hezbollah attacked Israel.

Since then, Israeli strikes have killed more than 2,000 people and displaced more than one million, despite international calls for a ceasefire, and Israeli ground forces have invaded south Lebanon.