Trump would "welcome" Israel-Lebanon ceasefire: U.S. official
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Trump and Netanyahu at Mar-a-Lago in December. Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
As Israel's Security Cabinet convened on Wednesday to discuss a potential ceasefire in Lebanon, a U.S. official told Axios that President Trump would "welcome and be happy with an end of hostilities."
Why it matters: The ceasefire proposal is politically sensitive for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. And while the two tracks are officially separate, it could help President Trump reach a peace deal with Iran.
What they're saying: "The U.S. hasn't asked Israel for a ceasefire in Lebanon and it's not part of the peace negotiations with Iran. But the president would welcome and be happy with an end of hostilities as part of an agreement between Israel and Lebanon," the U.S. official said.
- Israeli officials said the war in Lebanon and a potential ceasefire would be discussed during the Cabinet meeting on Wednesday night.
- The meeting ended without the Israeli government making a decision on a ceasefire.
State of play: Secretary of State Marco Rubio hosted a rare meeting between Israeli and Lebanese diplomats on Tuesday.
- The Lebanese ambassador raised a request for a ceasefire during the meeting. Hezbollah has not said whether it supports the idea.
- Netanyahu had rejected Lebanese proposals for direct talks until Trump pushed him to de-escalate last week. Israel had been stepping up its offensive, including with a string of deadly strikes in the 24 hours after the Iran ceasefire was agreed to.
- Tehran claims its truce with Washington also covered Lebanon, and that Israel (and by extension the U.S.) is violating it. Israel and the U.S. deny that.
Behind the scenes: The possibility of a ceasefire was discussed in Tuesday's meeting with Rubio.
- The Israeli and Lebanese ambassadors both said they'd go back to their bosses and return with answers, a U.S. source told Axios.
- The source said the proposal raised in the meeting included confidence-building measures from both sides.
Between the lines: Israel, Lebanon and the U.S. have all stressed that their talks and any potential agreement aren't coming at the behest of Iran.
- But de-escalation in Lebanon would simplify ongoing U.S.-Iran diplomacy.
- Iran's chief negotiator, Speaker of Parliament Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, wrote on X on Wednesday that a comprehensive ceasefire in Lebanon "will be the result of the resistance and steadfast struggle of the great Hezbollah and the unity of the Axis of Resistance."
- "The United States must comply with the agreement. Resistance and Iran are one soul, both in war and in ceasefire. America should withdraw from 'Israel First' mistake," he wrote.
What to watch: U.S. and Iranian negotiators made progress in talks on Tuesday on a potential framework agreement to end the war, two U.S. officials said.
Go deeper: The latest on U.S.-Iran talks
