Lebanon’s ‘ceasefire’ collapses within minutes as violence surges and diplomacy falters ahead of US talks

Report by Lara El Hachem, English adaptation by Karine Keuchkerian

With a suspended ceasefire, Lebanon is experiencing a violent truce that can no longer accommodate the counting of the dead and wounded as the toll continues to rise with each passing hour.

So far, all efforts have proven unsuccessful. A ceasefire scheduled to take effect at 4 p.m. Friday through U.S., Iranian, and Qatari mediation collapsed within minutes of its implementation.

A U.S. attempt by Secretary of State Marco Rubio to stabilize the truce at midnight Friday into Saturday, following a call with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun at 7 p.m. Friday, also failed.

According to LBCI sources, the call focused on activating the ceasefire monitoring mechanism, consolidating the truce, and halting Israeli attacks. The sources also said the U.S. side was frustrated by Israeli strikes targeting civilians. 

The call followed discussions between Ambassador Nada Hamadeh Moawad, Rubio, and Counselor Michael Needham, during which the United States reaffirmed its support for President Aoun.

However, in Tel Aviv, the situation remained unchanged. Lebanese civilians were killed from the south to the Bekaa region, including women, children, and a Lebanese army soldier who was on his way to duty.

Hezbollah, for its part, says it is responding to attacks and confronting infiltration attempts toward the Ali al-Taher hill, which Israel has placed under close surveillance.

Amid this escalation, the most severe since the initial announcement of a ceasefire, the fifth round of Lebanese-Israeli negotiations is set to begin on the following schedule: a political-military meeting on June 23, a security meeting on June 24, and a political meeting on June 25.

Lebanon is expected to demand a full Israeli withdrawal within a defined timetable. If the U.S. proposal regarding a “pilot zone” is raised again, Lebanon says it is open to discussing its size and scope. 

However, a suggestion to designate the Beaufort Castle and Zawtar areas as an initial pilot zone reportedly received no Israeli response and is now considered effectively obsolete. The aim of that proposal was to protect Nabatieh, but the city is now described as being under fire.

There is no doubt that the Lebanese delegation faces an increasingly difficult mission, caught between Israel’s internal political and broader U.S.-Iran negotiations. While all parties are seeking gains, Lebanon, so far, remains the loser.