Lebanese Prime Minister stated on Wednesday (October 30th) that he is making efforts to achieve a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah in the coming days.
Najib Mikati, the caretaker Prime Minister of Lebanon, mentioned that after a phone call with Amos Hochstein, the U.S. Middle East envoy, he cautiously optimistically views reaching a ceasefire agreement before the U.S. presidential election day on November 5th.
Mikati told Lebanon’s Al Jadeed TV, “Hochstein suggested on the phone that we could reach an agreement by the end of the month or November 5th.”
He added, “We are doing our best, and we should remain optimistic that we will reach a ceasefire agreement in the next few hours or days.”
On Wednesday, the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation (KAN) released a draft ceasefire agreement reportedly drafted in Washington, stipulating an initial 60-day ceasefire.
Israeli officials have not commented on this leaked document. However, Channel 12 in Israel reported that during a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Netanyahu on Tuesday (October 29th), senior Israeli officials generally believed that Israel’s goals in Lebanon had been largely achieved, and now it was time to seek a ceasefire agreement.
Netanyahu reportedly stated that as long as about 60,000 displaced residents in northern Israel can safely return home, a ceasefire would be appropriate.
In light of this, the U.S. Middle East envoy Hochstein is expected to visit Israel on Thursday (October 31st) along with White House senior official Brett McGurk to discuss the possibility of reaching a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah and Hamas.
An American official had previously stated they would discuss a range of issues, including Gaza, Lebanon, hostages, Iran, and broader regional affairs.
The Israeli Defense Forces said on Wednesday in a statement that fighter jets had targeted Hezbollah command centers in Baalbek in northeastern Lebanon and Nabatieh in the south.
Before the attacks, evacuation warnings were issued to all areas in these two cities. The IDF stated that their target was a Hezbollah fuel depot in the Bekaa Valley region.
Regarding the Israeli bombing in Baalbek, U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller reiterated on Wednesday that Washington supported Israel’s strikes on Hezbollah positions, while also urging Israel to avoid targeting civilians, civilian infrastructure, and important cultural heritage sites.
Last October 7th, the Palestinian militant group Hamas launched an assault on southern Israel, sparking the Gaza War. Hezbollah in Lebanon fired at Israeli positions in support of their Hamas allies in Gaza. Over the past year, Israel and Hezbollah have been in constant conflict.
Earlier on Wednesday, Hezbollah’s new leader, Naim Qassem, stated that if Israel wishes to end the war, the militant group would agree to a ceasefire within certain conditions.
This speech is Qassem’s first public address since assuming office as Secretary-General. The day before, Hezbollah announced his appointment as the new leader, succeeding Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed by Israel, as the former Secretary-General.
Reports indicated that Hezbollah engaged in fierce battles with Israeli forces for the third consecutive day in the southern town of Khiyam and its surrounding areas, marking the deepest incursion of Israeli ground troops into Lebanese territory since the escalation of the conflict five weeks ago.
Hezbollah also claimed to have launched missiles at a military base in the southeast of Tel Aviv, the Israeli capital.
The details of the ceasefire agreement draft reported by Israeli media closely align with previous reports from Reuters, citing two sources.
According to the document, during the initial 60-day ceasefire period, the Lebanese army would deploy along the border and seize weapons held by Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.
Israel would withdraw from Lebanon within the first week of the 60-day ceasefire period, to be replaced by the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF). The transition would be assisted by United Nations peacekeeping forces.
Ultimately, Lebanon would deploy 10,000 LAF soldiers in border areas adjacent to Israel.
After the 60-day implementation period concludes, all parties would discuss and carry out a permanent ceasefire based on UN resolutions 1701 and 1559. Resolution 1701, adopted in 2006, sought to end hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel, calling for a permanent ceasefire based on a buffer zone. Resolution 1559, passed in 2004, called for the disbandment of all militias in Lebanon and the disarmament of armed groups.
A new International Monitoring and Enforcement Mechanism (IMEM) would be established, with the U.S. serving as the chair and involving Italy, France, Germany, Spain, the UK, the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), and other regional countries.
The draft agreement also stipulated that Israel “could choose to act against any violations of the agreement” and would have the ability to respond to threats originating from within Lebanon.
However, the White House appears to be distancing itself from this leaked proposal. White House National Security spokesman Sean Savett, when asked about it, stated, “There are many reports and drafts circulating. But they do not necessarily reflect the current state of the negotiations.”
During a press briefing, Savett did not address whether the leaked version at least reflected the basic framework of the negotiations.
(This article references reports from Reuters and The Jerusalem Post)