Israel, Lebanon and the United States signed a trilateral framework agreement in Washington on Friday. This agreement is aimed at opening a path toward a peace deal between the long-time adversaries.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the agreement after five rounds of talks in Washington. He said the accord “begins to put in place a framework for lasting peace and security.”
The US State Department listed the signing as part of a trilateral framework among the United States, Israel and Lebanon on June 26. Additionally, Axios reported that the agreement marked a major diplomatic development. This development was brokered by the Trump administration.
Lebanon’s ambassador to Washington, Nada Hamadeh Moawad, called the accord a first step toward restoring Lebanese sovereignty and territorial integrity. She said it also aimed to secure a permanent cessation of hostilities and allow people to return to their land.
Israel’s ambassador to the United States, Yechiel Leiter, said the deal meant “Iran is out, Hezbollah is out, and the road to peace between Israel and Lebanon is in.”
The framework followed weeks of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. Hezbollah drew Lebanon into the broader Middle East war on March 2 with rocket fire at Israel. This came after US-Israeli strikes killed Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Read: Israel Lebanon Ceasefire Tied to Hezbollah Pullback
Lebanon says Israeli air strikes and a ground invasion killed more than 4,200 people. Direct talks began in April under US pressure, and an April 17 truce failed to end the fighting.
A new ceasefire was declared this month as Tehran pushed for Lebanon to form part of its wider deal with Washington to end the regional conflict. However, the framework details were not immediately released.
