Israel-Lebanon latest: Netanyahu backs ceasefire deal with Hezbollah – UK Times

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu will present a US-led ceasefire plan to his cabinet for approval tonight, he said.

“That is why tonight I will bring to the cabinet approval an outline for a ceasefire in Lebanon – the duration of the ceasefire will depend of what is happening,” he said.

US secretary of state Antony Blinken said both sides in the Israel-Hezbollah conflict were exchanging daily missile fire when asked about Israel’s bombardment of Beirut at the G7 meeting.

“[It] only underscores how urgent it is to get the ceasefire, and it’s why we’ve been working so intensely on bringing it to a conclusion,” Mr Blinken said.

“That’s the single most important thing to make an immediate difference, to stop the rockets and missiles flying in both directions.”

He acknowledged that Israel was attacking Beirut, “but every single day, Hezbollah has been launching projectiles into Israel and northern Israel, as it’s done virtually every day since October 7 [2023], which is how this problem started.”

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to deliver a national address at 6pm UK time following a meeting with his national security cabinet.

Mr Netanyahu is widely expected to announce a ceasefire deal with Hezbollah after terms were brokered by the US government to end one conflict engulfing the Middle East after the 7 October, 2023, Hamas attacks against Israeli communities plunged the region into a multi-front war.

According to reports, the ceasefire would see Israeli troops withdraw from southern Lebanon, and Lebanese troops would move into the area, a Hezbollah stronghold.

However Israel has warned that it reserves the right to strike Hezbollah should it breach the terms of a deal.

Israel is undertaking a massive, deadly bombardment of Beirut ahead of a ceasefire deal with Hezbollah.

Lebanon’s ministry of public health says seven people have been killed and 37 others have been injured in an Israeli strike in the Nuwairi area in Beirut.

The update comes as the Israeli Defence Force continues to pummel the Lebanese capital, issueing several evacuation orders for sections of the city over the past few hours ahead of a ceasefire agreement expected to be secured later today.

Meanwhile, an Israeli air strike killed at least 10 Palestinians at a school sheltering displaced families in Gaza City, medics said on Tuesday.

They said that dozens of people were also wounded in the Israeli strike that hit the Al-Hurreya School in the Zeitoun neighborhood, one of the oldest suburbs of Gaza City.

Israeli troops have reached the Litani River area of southern Lebanon, according to the IDF.

In a statement released earlier today, Israeli forces said their 91st Division pursued Hezbollah sites and weapons hauls “in complicated, built-up and mountainous areas in southern Lebanon from which terrorist plots were taken towards the northern settlements.”

“In the area of ​​the Litani river, the battle team of the Alexandroni brigade, including the reserve forces of the 769th brigade, the Golani patrol and the Sheldag unit raided following intelligence indications of many terrorist infrastructures that were hidden along the route of the complex terrain,” the statement said.

Israel’s Defence Minister, Israel Katz, has approved the continuation of the military offensive on the northern front of the conflict as Israeli forces carry out a major bombardment of Beirut and southern Lebanon while facing international pressure to agree to a ceasefire.

Israel earlier said it was carrying out “large scale” airstrikes on Beirut in a major bombardment of the Lebanese capital, releasing footage of its airforce striking 20 targets it said were Hezbollah strongholds.

The IDF also released a lengthy statement in which it claimed to have “eliminated” a Hezbollah commander who had carried out attacks against Israel’s northern settlements.

Foreign Ministers from the G7 democracies have upped the pressure on Israel to accept a ceasefire deal with Hezbollah in Lebanon, saying “now is the time to conclude a diplomatic settlement.”

In a draft statement at the end of a two-day meeting in Italy, the G7 ministers urged Israel to facilitate humanitarian aid delivery to Palestinians, and condemned increasing settler violence in the West Bank.

The ministers also condemned recent attack on the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon and expressed their support for the UN Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA, saying it plays a “vital role.”

Israel says it is carrying out “large scale” airstrikes on Beirut in a major bombardment of the Lebanese capital ahead of critical ceasefire talks.

The Israeli Defence Force has posted a statement on social media platform X accompanied by black-and-white, aerial footage of explosions across a large area of Beirut.

“20 terrorist targets in 120 seconds,” part of the statement said, adding that Hezbollah’s money management and storage facilities were attacked in the air raid.

The IDF also released a lengthy statement in which it claimed to have “eliminated” a Hezbollah commander who had carried out attacks against Israel’s northern settlements.

“In the last week and in a precise activity, the commando fighters identified a squad of armed terrorists with the help of observation devices. Directing fire from the air and from the ground, a number of terrorists were killed, including the commander of the sector in the area where the forces operate,” the statement said.

“The commander of the sector in Hezbollah led terrorists and shooting towards the settlements of the north, including the city of Matula.”

The IDF statement said anti-tank missiles and a rock launcher were found following the operation.

Massive explosions from Israeli warplanes set Beirut’s skies ablaze again on Tuesday, as the UN warned of an “unprecedented humanitarian crisis”.

But amid the escalating violence a glimmer of hope emerged: the potential end to a devastating conflict between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah group, which has claimed thousands of lives since it erupted 14 months ago in the wake of the devastating Gaza war.

Israeli government sources told The Independent that Israel was poised to approve a US-France plan for a ceasefire with Hezbollah. Reports suggested Israel’s security cabinet was expected to convene as early as Tuesday evening to sign off on the proposal in a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“It seems very positive,” one official told The Independent.

The pressure is mounting – the European Union’s top diplomat Joseph Borrell said on Tuesday that there were “no excuses” for Israel to refuse the ceasefire, adding that all its security concerns had been addressed and that Lebanon would “fall apart” if it was not pushed through.

But in northern Israel, news of the proposal sparked outrage among hardline local mayors whose populations have been evacuated further south. Concerns have also risen about resistance from far-right members of Netanyahu’s cabinet, who may also attempt to block the deal.