Netanyahu softens stance on ceasefire proposal for Lebanon, agrees to hold talks
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BEIRUT – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged on Sept 27 to hold talks on a US-proposed ceasefire in Lebanon that could ease fears of a regional war, appearing to soften his stance despite domestic opposition.
Mr Netanyahu’s less combative tone came as the US warned that further escalation would only make it harder for civilians on both sides to return home.
Israel would take part in deliberations on the plan for a three-week truce with Hezbollah in coming days, Mr Netanyahu’s office said in an overnight statement.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Israeli Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer have already held talks on the matter, according to the White House.
Mr Blinken told Mr Dermer the ceasefire would “allow civilians on both sides of the border to return to their homes”.
“Further escalation of the conflict will only make that objective more difficult,” Mr Blinken’s spokesman, Mr Matthew Miller, said in a statement.
The statement from Mr Netanyahu’s office said: “Israel appreciates the US efforts in this regard because the US role is indispensable in advancing stability and security in the region.”
The US-led diplomatic push is seen as a last-ditch attempt to prevent this week’s escalation of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah from spiralling into a full-scale conflict.
Israel has said it was preparing to stage a potential ground invasion of neighbouring Lebanon, which would risk dragging in key ally Washington as well as Hezbollah’s sponsor Iran.
Israeli bombing of Iran-backed Hezbollah strongholds around Lebanon has killed hundreds of people this week,
The US, France and other allies unveiled the 21-day truce on Sept 25, after President Joe Biden and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron met on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.
But Mr Netanyahu flatly rejected the ceasefire proposal on Sept 26, ordering the military to continue “fighting with full force”.
The White House expressed frustration at the rejection, saying the truce proposal had taken “a lot of care and effort”.
“We wouldn’t have made that statement, we wouldn’t have worked on that if we didn’t have reason to believe that the conversations that we were having with the Israelis, in particular, were supportive of the goal there,” National Security spokesman John Kirby said in a statement on Sept 26.
Mr Macron said later that it was “a mistake” for Mr Netanyahu to refuse a ceasefire, and that he would have to take “responsibility” for a regional escalation.
Speaking in Canada, where he met Prime Minister Justin Trudeau – who also backed the ceasefire – Mr Macron noted that the ceasefire plan had been prepared with Mr Netanyahu himself.
“Intolerable”
The joint ceasefire statement said the situation in Lebanon has become “intolerable” and “is in nobody’s interest, neither of the people of Israel nor of the people of Lebanon”.
Lebanon’s National News Agency reported that Israel carried out air raids early on Sept 27 on several cities in southern Lebanon, with injuries recorded.
The country’s Health Ministry said late on Sept 26 that Israeli strikes had killed 92 people in the country and injured 153 in the past 24 hours.
More than 1,500 people have been killed since hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah erupted last October,
According to the International Organisation for Migration, about 118,000 people have been displaced by the fighting in Lebanon over the past week.
The Israeli Defence Ministry, meanwhile, announced it had secured a new US$8.7 billion (S$11.2 billion) aid package from the US to support the country’s ongoing military efforts, underlining Washington’s unwillingness to use its military aid as leverage for a ceasefire.
Hezbollah commander killed
For the fourth time this week, Israel carried out a strike on Hezbollah’s south Beirut stronghold, which it said killed the head of the group’s drone unit.
Hezbollah said in a statement that the strike killed Mohammed Srur, who was born in 1973.
The Israeli military earlier said in a statement that its fighter jets had “targeted and eliminated” Srur, identifying him as “the commander of Hezbollah’s air unit”.
The Israeli military said it was carrying out “precise strikes” in the capital.
Lebanon’s Health Ministry said in a statement that two people were killed in the attack and 15 wounded, “including a woman in critical condition”.
Yemen missile
Israel’s ongoing bombardments in Lebanon have raised fears of an all-out regional war in the Middle East.
Israel said earlier in September that it was shifting its focus from the Gaza Strip, where it has been fighting a war with Hamas since the Oct 7, 2023, attack, to its border with Lebanon.
Israel’s military chief, Lieutenant-General Herzi Halevi, has told soldiers to prepare for a possible ground offensive, according to an army statement.
The Israeli military said on Sept 26 that it intercepted a missile fired from Yemen.
The leader of Yemen’s Houthi rebels, Abdul Malik al-Huthi, said in a televised address earlier on Sept 26 that the Iran-backed group would “not hesitate to support Lebanon and Hezbollah”.
Since November, the Houthis have targeted Red Sea shipping with drones and missiles, saying the actions are in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza war, which was sparked by Hamas’ Oct 7 attack on Israel.
Gaza key
Diplomats have said efforts to end the war in Gaza were key to halting the fighting in Lebanon.
But despite months of mediation efforts involving the US, a Gaza ceasefire is as elusive as ever.
At the UN General Assembly in New York, Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud announced a new international coalition to seek a two-state solution in Gaza.
Hamas’ October attack resulted in the deaths of 1,205 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures that include hostages killed in captivity.
Of the 251 hostages seized by militants, 97 are still held in Gaza, including 33 the Israeli military says are dead.
Israel’s retaliatory military offensive has killed at least 41,534 people in Gaza, most of them civilians, according to figures provided by the Hamas-run territory’s Health Ministry. The UN has described the figures as reliable. BLOOMBERG, AFP
