Biden announces Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire
US President Joe Biden has announced that Israel and Hezbollah have agreed to Washington’s permanent ceasefire proposal, beginning at 4am local time on Wednesday.
Hostilities between Israel and the Shia militia based in southern Lebanon escalated in September, with the Israel Defense Forces launching a series of airstrikes and later deploying ground troops.
“I just spoke with the prime ministers of Israel and Lebanon,” Biden said on Tuesday, speaking in the Rose Garden of the White House. “I’m pleased to announce that their governments have accepted the US proposal to end the devastating conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.”
The ceasefire is designed “to be a permanent cessation of hostilities,” the US president added.
Under the terms of the armistice, the Lebanese army and police will deploy to the country’s border with Israel over the next 60 days, while its southern neighbor will “gradually withdraw its remaining forces and civilians,” according to Biden. Hezbollah and “other terrorist organizations will not be allowed” into the area, he added.
In the hours before the announcement, Israeli jets hammered Beirut and other Lebanese cities, while Hezbollah fired rockets into the Galilee region of Israel.
The Israeli government of voted overwhelmingly in favor of the US proposal, with only one of the ministers opposed, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office has said. West Jerusalem “maintains its right to act against any threat to its security,” however.
Biden used the Rose Garden speech to appeal to Hamas for a ceasefire in Gaza as well.
“Hamas has a choice to make. Their only way out is to release hostages, including American citizens, which they hold and in the process bring an end to the fighting, which would make possible a surge of humanitarian relief,” he said.
Israel declared war on the Gaza-based Palestinian group after its October 7, 2023 raid that resulted in the deaths of over 1,100 Israelis, while an estimated 250 were taken captive.
