Israel and Lebanon agree to extend ceasefire by 45 days despite new strikes amid precarious truce

A ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon will be extended by 45 days after another round of talks.

Staff Writers
Reuters
US President Donald Trump declared a ceasefire after meeting Israeli and Lebanese representatives.
US President Donald Trump declared a ceasefire after meeting Israeli and Lebanese representatives. Credit: EPA/AAP

Israel and Lebanon have agreed to a 45-day extension of a ceasefire US President Donald Trump declared in April, the US State Department says.

“The April 16 cessation of hostilities will be extended by 45 days to enable further progress,” State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said.

The State Department cast Israel-Lebanon talks - held in Washington DC on Thursday and Friday - as “highly productive” and said the countries would reconvene negotiations on June 2 and June 3.

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“On May 14 and 15, the United States hosted two days of highly-productive talks between Israel and Lebanon,” Mr Pigott wrote in a post on X.

“The April 16 cessation of hostilities will be extended by 45 days to enable further progress. The State Department will reconvene the political track of negotiations on June.”

This week’s talks were the sides’ third meeting since Israel intensified air attacks on Lebanon after Hezbollah fired missiles at Israel on March 2, three days into the US-Israeli war on Iran.

Israel had widened its ground invasion into Lebanon’s south last month.

Fought in parallel to the US-Iran conflict, Israel’s war in Lebanon has rumbled on since Trump declared a ceasefire on April 16 although hostilities have largely been contained to southern Lebanon since then.

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