A ceasefire deal has been rumored to be in the works between Israel and Lebanon. On Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered brief remarks indicating that a deal had been agreed to in principle and he would be presenting it to the Israeli cabinet Tuesday evening โ the Israeli security cabinet has approved the deal and it will now be presented to the full cabinet.
The broad outlines of the plan are as follows:
Under the proposed terms of an initial two-month cease-fire, Hezbollah is required to move its forces north of the Litani River โ a significant focal point which in some places is 20 miles from the Israeli border โ and Israeli forces must withdraw from southern Lebanon as well. The Lebanese Armed Forces are to deploy to the border region within 60 days, and a five-country committee chaired by the U.S. and including France would monitor compliance of the terms of the deal, Reuters reported.
A peacekeeping mission by observers from the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) will also continue, according to the Israeli news agency Tazpit Press Service (TPS-IL).
BREAKING: Benjamin Netanyahu is to present a ceasefire deal to his Israeli cabinet.
โ Sky News (@SkyNews) November 26, 2024
"The duration of the ceasefire depends on what happens in Lebanon", he says.
๐ https://t.co/wRDKWE7LYb
๐บ Sky 501 and YouTube pic.twitter.com/CyZN3q6uye
During his remarks, Netanyahu (via translator) said:
"Tonight, I will bring before the cabinet a plan for a ceasefire in Lebanon. The duration of the ceasefire depends on what happens in Lebanon.
"We have an understanding with the United States. We are maintaining our full liberty to take military operations. If Hezbollah tries to attack us, if it arms itself, if it rebuilds infrastructure next to the borders, we will attack them. If they launch missiles, if they dig tunnels, we will attack.
"Yes, I can hear people saying that if we start a ceasefire, we will not be able to attack; we will not be able to resume the war. Let me remind you: This is exactly what people said to me when we entered into the ceasefire in Gaza, in which we released our hostages. People said we would not resume fighting, but we did โ and how.
"People say to me, 'Well, Hezbollah will lay low for a year or two, will rearm itself, and then, it will attack us.' But Hezbollah will commit a breach of the agreement not only when they fire at us, but even when they try to rearm themselves. For any such breach, we will react very forcefully. I know there are those who don't believe we will do that. But many didn't believe that we would enter with ground forces into Gaza, and we did. People didn't believe that we'd enter into Shifa and Khan Yunis, and we did. People didn't believe that, faced with immense international pressure, we would enter into Rafah and the Philadelphi Corridor. Not only did we enter these places, we attacked them โ and how.
"There are many people who didn't believe that we would ever attack in Lebanon, and we attacked there, too. We attacked there very forcefully, in a huge sophistication that took everybody in the world by surprise."
Hamas Releases Video Allegedly Showing Oct. 7 Hostage Who Was Killed; The IDF Responds.
One of President Trump's Top Priorities Must Be to Bring Home the American Hostages in Gaza
International Criminal Court Issues Arrest Warrant for Benjamin Netanyahu
Netanyahu continued:
"So, after all of that, maybe we should start believing in our determination โ in our commitment to obtaining victory.
"So why is this the right time for a ceasefire? There are three main reasons. First, focusing on the Iranian threat โ and there's no need to expand. Second, refreshing our forces and rearming our troops, and it's no secret there have been delays โ big delays โ in the supply of arms, and this delay is about to stop soon. We will arm ourselves with sophisticated arms that will help us protect our troops and give us even greater force to complete our missions. And the third reason for a ceasefire now: isolating Hamas. From the second day of the war, Hamas was counting on Hezbollah fighting together with it, and once Hezbollah is eliminated, Hamas is left alone. Our pressure on Hamas will grow stronger, and this will help us in the sacred mission of bringing back our hostages."
This is a developing story. RedState will report further details regarding the ceasefire and its approval as they become available.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member