Israel and Hezbollah reached an agreement Friday to restore a ceasefire in Lebanon, even as US officials scrambled to keep escalating violence from undermining ongoing nuclear negotiations with Iran.
A senior White House official told Sky News Arabia that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had agreed “100%” to renewing the ceasefire. A separate senior Israeli official told Walla that the terms were simple: “If Hezbollah does not attack, Israel will not attack.”
The ceasefire came after a tense day of diplomacy. Iran had demanded guarantees about the situation in Lebanon before it would return to the negotiating table with the United States.
CNN, citing a source with knowledge of the discussions, reported that Washington sent word to Tehran that Israel had no plans to expand its military operations. That source told CNN: “Hezbollah violated the ceasefire. Israel agreed to absorb it, and that message was conveyed to the Iranians. Now it is up to Hezbollah to stop.”
The diplomatic push followed a deadly confrontation in southern Lebanon. The Israel Defense Forces announced that Battalion 52 commander Lt. Col. Dor Ben Shimhon was killed in combat. Three other soldiers also died in the same incident, though their names had not yet been cleared for release.
IDF Spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin said a Battalion 52 tank was struck overnight Friday. Early findings suggest the vehicle may have been hit by something from the air. Investigators have not ruled out an anti-tank missile, a drone, or a Hezbollah explosive device as the cause.
In response, Israel launched a sweeping military campaign against Hezbollah positions, conducting more than 150 strikes across Lebanon — hitting infrastructure in the south as well as targets further into the country.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz stated: “We will not allow harm to our soldiers or citizens, and every violation of the ceasefire by Hezbollah will be met with great force.”
The fighting also disrupted planned diplomatic activity in Switzerland. A scheduled meeting between US Vice President JD Vance and an Iranian delegation led by Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf was called off.
That meeting had been set to coincide with an in-person signing ceremony following the digital signing of a memorandum of understanding by President Donald Trump and President Masoud Pezeshkian.
