US President Joe Biden appeared shortly after Israel announced this Tuesday that it accepts a ceasefire in Lebanon after more than a year of war with Hezbollah. “I have spoken with the prime minister of Israel and Lebanon and I am happy to announce that both governments have accepted the United States proposal to end this devastating conflict,” announced the president, who noted that the ceasefire It should come into effect at 4.00 am local time.
“The security of the people of Israel and Lebanon cannot be achieved solely on the battlefield,” Biden said, “and that is why I have directed my team to work with the governments of Israel and Lebanon to forge a ceasefire that end the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. According to the agreement reached today, fighting across the border between Lebanon and Israel will end at 4:00 a.m. tomorrow morning, local time. The agreement is intended as a permanent cessation of hostilities.”
Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati, for his part, applauded the agreement, considering it a “fundamental step” towards stability in Lebanon. “This agreement, which I reviewed this afternoon, serves as a fundamental step towards establishing calm and stability in Lebanon, and to facilitate the return of displaced people to their villages and towns,” Mikati said, according to a statement issued by his office. .
Shortly after Biden announced the ceasefire agreement, Israeli forces carried out an airstrike on Beirut, the Lebanese capital. According to the Associated Press, it is not yet known where the planes hit, but witnesses say it appeared to have been near downtown. The gesture is reminiscent of the bombing that Tel Aviv carried out on Beirut while Netanyahu was giving an aggressive speech at the UN General Assembly and defending the offensive on Lebanon.
It was during that attack that Israel killed Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, and further burned the region to the point of exchanging missiles with Iran.
“Let’s be clear, Israel did not start this war,” Biden said.
“Neither did the United States. Over the past year, including the days immediately following October 7, I directed the U.S. Army to mobilize resources in the region, including aircraft carriers, fighter squadrons, and sophisticated air defense batteries, with the goal of defending Israel and deter our common enemy,” said Biden, who has always used the narrative of Israel’s self-defense to continue justifying US military and economic complicity in the Israeli genocide in Palestine.
Indeed, the Israeli cabinet approved this Tuesday a ceasefire agreement in Lebanon after more than a year of war with Hezbollah that has left 3,500 dead and 1.2 million displaced in the Arab country, according to Channel 12. Israeli. In Israel, 78 people have died — 47 of them civilians — and around 60,000 have had to leave their homes in the north of the country due to the exchange of fire.
Netanyahu has stated that Hezbollah “is no longer the same” and that it has “gone back decades.” “We have destroyed most of the rockets and missiles. “We have killed thousands of terrorists and destroyed underground and terrorist infrastructure near our borders,” he said. “That is why I will present a ceasefire plan in Lebanon to the cabinet tonight.”
Biden, who has been stuck for months with the ceasefire in Gaza and the release of the Israeli hostages, wanted to talk about the agreement as an achievement. Although the truth is that the negotiation has broken down with the victory of Donald Trump: the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, announced shortly after the elections that he would prepare a ceasefire in Lebanon as a “gift” to the new president-elect.
Two months after leaving the presidency and definitively retiring from political life, Biden knows that one of the aspects that will mark his legacy will be the Gaza war. A conflict in which, despite staging a constant struggle with Netanyahu, Washington has never stopped sending money and weapons. The democrat wanted to present the ceasefire in Lebanon as a triumph of his diplomatic efforts – little fruitful so far – in the region and a sign that the ceasefire in Gaza is one step closer.
“Today’s announcement brings us closer to realizing the affirmative agenda that I have promoted throughout my presidency: a vision for the future of the Middle East that is peaceful, prosperous and integrated across borders,” said Biden, who assured that “ Hamas now has to make a decision.” That is why the American president has announced that “in the coming days, the United States will make another effort, together with Turkey, Egypt, Qatar, Israel and others, to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza.”
To Israel, Biden has also asked to be “brave” and transform “tactical advances against Iran into a coherent strategy that guarantees Israel’s long-term security and fosters broader peace and prosperity in the region.”
Before the US president’s appearance, Secretary of State Antony Blinken assured reporters that the United States is in the “final stages” of closing the ceasefire with Hezbollah. “It will make a big difference in saving lives and livelihoods in Lebanon and Israel. It will make a big difference in creating conditions that allow people to return home safely in northern Israel and southern Lebanon. And I also believe that, by reducing tensions in the region, it can help us end the conflict in Gaza,” Blinken said on the sidelines of the G7 meeting in Italy.
Although Tel-Aviv has given the green light to the agreement, Hezbollah has not participated directly in the talks. The interlocutor has been the Government of Lebanon, which has assured that the Shiite militia will comply with the conditions. The
Details about the proposal have not yet been announced, although early leaks suggest that the text is based on UN Security Council Resolution 1701. The document was the basis that allowed the last major war between Israel and Hezbollah to end in 2006, although it was never implemented.
In the summer, Biden held a similar appearance last May to present a ceasefire proposal in Gaza made by Israel. At that time, the American president showed his support for the text and asked both parties to accept it. With his appearance, Biden sought a coup d’état to reach an agreement and convey the message that the end of the war was near. This was not the case, more than half a year later, Israeli attacks continue on the Strip, where there are already more than 43,000 Palestinians dead since the war began on October 7, 2023.
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