Hezbollah Denounces US-Mediated Israel-Lebanon Ceasefire Deal, Says Abiding Would Amount To Surrender

Hezbollah has denounced a new US-mediated ceasefire deal between Israel and Lebanon, warning that abiding by its terms would amount to surrender and vowing to continue resistance as long as Israeli forces remain in southern Lebanon.

The ceasefire framework, announced in Washington after a fourth round of US-brokered talks, was accepted by the Israeli and Lebanese governments but negotiated without Hezbollah's participation.

According to US and regional officials, the agreement calls for a halt to cross-border attacks and the creation of "pilot" security zones in southern Lebanon where only the Lebanese Armed Forces may operate and all non-state actors, including Hezbollah, are barred, according to the New York Times.

The truce is conditional on Hezbollah ceasing fire and withdrawing its fighters from territory between the Israeli border and the Litani River, an area where Israeli ground forces have created a self-declared security zone.

In a written statement carried by Hezbollah-affiliated media, Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem rejected the deal outright, saying that any requirement to pull the group's fighters out of southern Lebanon while Israeli troops stay in place would mean "surrender and defeat" and serve "the enemy's objectives."

Qassem described the Washington declaration as a "roadmap for the annihilation of a section of the Lebanese people and the enslavement of the rest," and called negotiations with Israel "shameless" and "degrading" for Lebanon.

He stressed that Hezbollah would not abide by an agreement it did not help shape and that resistance would continue "as long as the occupation exists," Yahoo News reported.

Lebanese officials said they view the framework as a step toward stabilizing the border after months of exchanges that have displaced civilians on both sides and strained the country's already fragile economy.

The plan envisions US support for deploying Lebanese army units into areas vacated by Israeli forces once security conditions permit, but does not spell out a clear timetable for an Israeli withdrawal, a key Hezbollah demand.

Diplomats say the structure mirrors previous US-brokered cessations of hostilities but goes further in limiting Hezbollah's military footprint near the frontier.

Despite the announcement of the ceasefire terms, Israeli strikes on targets in southern Lebanon continued on Thursday, and Hezbollah claimed rocket and drone launches at Israeli military positions, as per KNPR.

Tags

Lebanon, United States, Israel, Ceasefire, Hezbollah