Another day, another Middle East ceasefire:
President Donald Trump announced a ten–day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon on Thursday, describing the truce as an initial step toward a permanent end to hostilities between the two nations. He also mentioned an invitation he sent to the prime minister of Israel and the Lebanese president for further talks at the White House.
The announcement, made via Trump’s Truth Social platform, follows high–level discussions held in Washington earlier this week. The ceasefire is scheduled to take effect today at 5pm EST.
The President stated that the agreement was reached following personal conversations with the Israeli and Lebanese leaders, noting that representatives from both countries met in Washington on Tuesday, marking the first such diplomatic encounter in 34 years.
‘I just had excellent conversations with the highly respected President Joseph Aoun, of Lebanon, and Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu, of Israel,’ Trump wrote. ‘These two leaders have agreed that in order to achieve peace between their countries, they will formally begin a ten-day ceasefire at 5pm EST.’
This might be helpful in attempting to persuade Israel not to try to expand into Lebanese territory. I don’t see how it’s going to slow down Hezbollah at all, though, especially if they’re not technically part of the ceasefire.