MONITORING (SW) – The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has approved the ceasefire deal in Lebanon “in principle”, reported CNN.
Netanyahu signaled his potential approval for the emerging ceasefire with Hezbollah during a security consultation with Israeli officials Sunday night, the source said.
On Monday, his spokesperson told CNN the Israeli cabinet will vote on the proposed deal on Tuesday and said it is expected to pass. Sources familiar with the negotiations said earlier that talks appear to be moving positively toward an agreement, but acknowledged that as Israel and Hezbollah continue to trade fire, one misstep could upend the talks.
Israeli forces continue to hammer Lebanon, killing at least 31 people in 24 hours, despite signs a ceasefire deal with Hezbollah could be close, reported Al Jazeera. In the Gaza Strip, winter storms washed away or damaged some 10,000 tents housing displaced Palestinians, as the World Health Organization (WHO) condemned Israel’s ongoing attacks on Kamal Adwan Hospital in the enclave’s north.
Israel’s attacks in Gaza has killed at least 44,235 Palestinians and wounded 104,638 since October 7, 2023, according to Al Jazeera. An estimated 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the Hamas-led attacks that day and more than 200 were taken captive. In Lebanon, at least 3,768 people have been killed and 15,699 wounded in Israeli attacks since the war on Gaza began.
United States envoy Amos Hochstein said in Beirut last week that a ceasefire deal between Israel and Lebanon was “within our grasp,” but that it was ultimately “the decision of the parties.”
He met Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati and parliament speaker Nabih Berri, the interlocutor with Hezbollah in the talks and said there had been “constructive” and “very good discussions to narrow the gaps.”
“We have a real opportunity to bring conflict to an end,” he added last week. “The window is now.” He departed Lebanon for Israel on Wednesday to try to bring the negotiations “to a close.”
The US-backed proposal aims to achieve a 60-day cessation of hostilities that some hope could form the basis of a lasting ceasefire.
Israel launched a major military offensive in Lebanon in mid-September following months of tit-for-tat border attacks which started on October 8 last year when Hezbollah attacked Israeli controlled territory in solidarity with Hamas and Palestinians in Gaza.
Since then, Israel has launched a ground invasion, killed a string of Hezbollah leaders – including one of its founders, Hassan Nasrallah – and injured thousands of people in an attack featuring exploding pagers.
