Lebanese and Israeli diplomats are meeting face-to-face in formal talks in Washington, the first direct diplomatic meeting between Lebanon and Israel in decades. Direct talks between Lebanon and Israel are highly unusual, with the two countries historically communicating through intermediaries.
The talks are mediated by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The US Department of State stated that the discussions were productive and all parties agreed to start direct negotiations at a mutually agreed time and place. Israel and Lebanon's ambassadors to the US have agreed in a first phone call to meet in Washington on Tuesday to seek an announcement on a ceasefire and a date to begin direct negotiations, with delegations meeting on Tuesday to discuss ceasefire conditions.
Hezbollah is not participating in the meeting, with the group opposing the direct engagement and intensifying attacks on northern Israel as the discussions commenced. Hezbollah said it fired rockets into Israel on March 2, in retaliation for the killing of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and constant Israeli bombing during a ceasefire. The group also said it will not abide by any agreements made during the talks and will not lay down its weapons.
Israel responded to Hezbollah's attacks with air strikes and a ground invasion of southern Lebanon. Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu conditioned the success of the talks on the disarmament of Hezbollah, while Israel refuses to discuss a ceasefire with Hezbollah.
The humanitarian toll from recent violence is severe, with more than 2,000 people killed in Israeli strikes in Lebanon, including hundreds of women and children, and over 1 million displaced. The death toll from Wednesday's massive bombardment had risen to 357, with 1,223 people injured. The Israeli military said the wave of attacks across the country had killed at least 180 Hezbollah terrorists from the Lebanese armed group. Lebanon's President Joseph Aoun said 13 state security personnel had been killed by strikes on the southern city of Nabatieh, with Lebanese authorities saying victims of the latest Israeli attacks also included seven members of the same family in the town of Abbassieh and 11 people in Zrarieh.
This violence unfolds against a fragile regional backdrop, with a fragile ceasefire reached between Israel, the US, and Iran last week. On February 28, Israel and the US carried out a coordinated attack on Iran and also attacked targets in Lebanon, while under pressure from the US and President Donald Trump, Israeli attacks on Lebanon have decreased in scope, though raids continue in the southern parts of the country.
According to Lebanese sources to Reuters, attempts are being made to agree on a ceasefire, possibly linked to the two-week ceasefire between the US and Iran that began on April 8. Hezbollah- and Iran-friendly media report that a week-long ceasefire may come into effect on Wednesday night, but Israel denies these reports. There is fierce dispute over whether Lebanon was included in the US-Iran ceasefire declared by US President Donald Trump on Tuesday, with Pakistan, which mediated the truce, and Iran saying Lebanon was included, while the US and Israel say Lebanon was not included.
Efforts to establish negotiations have been ongoing since a ceasefire agreement in November 2024, with US envoys previously mediating indirect talks between the two sides.
Key unknowns remain about what specific ceasefire conditions are being discussed in the Washington talks, and whether Hezbollah will agree to disarmament as demanded by Israel.
The exact timeline for when direct negotiations between Lebanon and Israel will formally begin is also unclear, with the US Department of State indicating a mutually agreed time will be set.
Potential implications of the talks for regional stability are significant, as a successful negotiation could reduce tensions between Israel and Lebanon, while failure might escalate violence further.