Washington.-The United States, France and other allies jointly demanded an “immediate” 21-day ceasefire to allow negotiations to begin in the growing conflict between Israel and the political-paramilitary group Hezbollah, which has caused more than 600 deaths in Lebanon in recent days.
The joint declaration, negotiated within the framework of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, affirms that the recent clashes are “intolerable and present an unacceptable risk of broader regional escalation.”
“We call for an immediate 21-day ceasefire on the Lebanon-Israel border to give room for diplomacy,” the statement said. “We call on all parties, including the governments of Israel and Lebanon, to immediately support the temporary ceasefire.”
For the moment, there was no reaction from the Israeli and Lebanese governments – nor from Hezbollah – but senior US officials said that all parties were aware of the call for a ceasefire and that they would speak out in the coming hours. However, Israel continued during the early hours of Thursday with its bombing campaign against different points in the south and east of Lebanon.
Officials said Hezbollah would not be a party to the ceasefire, but they believe the Lebanese government would coordinate its acceptance with the group. They also indicated that they hope Israel will “welcome favorably” the proposal and perhaps formally accept it when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks before the General Assembly on Friday.
Although the ceasefire call only applies to the Israel-Lebanon border, senior U.S. officials said they intended to take advantage of a three-week pause in fighting there to resume stalled negotiations aimed at achieving a ceasefire and a hostage release agreement between Israel and Hamas.
This Wednesday, a new wave of Israeli attacks left at least 50 dead in Lebanon, after Hezbollah launched a ballistic missile against Tel Aviv.
Among the countries calling for an immediate ceasefire are the United States, Australia, Canada, the European Union, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar.
US President Joe Biden’s national security team, led by Secretary of State Antony Blinken and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, worked with allies to reach an agreement, according to US officials.
The leaders, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations, maintained that the agreement was reached late Wednesday afternoon during a meeting held on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly between Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron.
“We are counting on both sides to accept it without delay,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot told the U.N. Security Council during a special meeting.
Barrot noted that France, Lebanon’s former colonial power, and the United States had consulted the parties on “the final parameters for a diplomatic solution to this crisis,” adding that “war is not inevitable.”
Robert Wood, deputy US ambassador to the UN, encouraged the Security Council to support the diplomatic efforts, but did not offer details about the plan.
“We are working with other countries on a proposal that we hope will lead to appeasement and enable talks for a diplomatic solution,” he declared.
Hours earlier, Blinken declared that Washington is “intensely engaged with a number of partners to reduce tensions in Lebanon and work toward a ceasefire agreement that would have many benefits for all involved.”
Blinken and other Biden advisers have spent the last three days at the U.N. General Assembly and on the sidelines of the annual meeting of world leaders in New York pressing other countries to support the plan, according to U.S. officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to be able to discuss sensitive diplomatic conversations.
Blinken first raised the proposal with the French foreign minister on Monday and then expanded his contacts that same evening at a dinner with the foreign ministers of all the G-7 industrialized democracies.
During a meeting with Gulf Cooperation Council foreign ministers on Wednesday morning, Blinken addressed Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan to request his approval and he obtained it. Next, Blinken and White House senior adviser Amos Hochstein met with Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati and got his approval.
The Lebanese National News Agency (ANN) reported that during the early hours of Thursday morning, Israeli fighter jets carried out a series of air strikes against a dozen towns located in the eastern Bekaa Valley, one of the bastions of the Lebanese armed formation.
The surroundings of the city of Hermel, in the northeast, were also subject to “several night attacks,” although most were concentrated in southern Lebanon, where “the Israeli enemy continued its bloody aggression day and night,” according to the ANN, which noted that there have been more displacements from that region. Clarín.
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2024-10-03 19:16:43