- Hezbollah says no official ceasefire proposal received yet
JERUSALEM: Hezbollah has not received any proposals on a truce for Lebanon, a spokesperson said Monday, as Israel’s foreign minister said diplomatic efforts had made “progress” and amid Israeli media reports that the cabinet had approved a ceasefire proposal.
“So far, according to my information, nothing official has reached Lebanon or us in this regard,” the head of Hezbollah’s media office, Mohammad Afif, said in news conference in the southern suburbs of Beirut.
“I believe that we are still in the phase of testing the waters and presenting initial ideas and proactive discussions, but so far there is nothing actual yet,” he added.
Israeli foreign minister Gideon Saar said on Monday that progress had been made in Lebanon’s ceasefire talks but that enforcement remained the most important element.
“There is progress,” Saar told a press conference on Monday, adding: “the main challenge will be to enforce what will be agreed.”
Israel Hayom reported on Sunday that substantial progress has been made in diplomatic negotiations over a proposed Lebanon ceasefire that would require Hezbollah to withdraw north of the Litani River, barring its military presence near the Israeli border, while the IDF would return to the international border.
Yedioth Ahronoth, Israel’s best-selling newspaper, reported on Monday that Israel and Lebanon have exchanged drafts through US envoy Amos Hochstein, signalling progress in efforts to reach a final agreement.
Israel ‘unable’ to occupy any Lebanese villages
Hezbollah said on Monday that the Israeli military has been incapable of occupying even a single village in Lebanon since launching cross-border ground operations six weeks ago.
Israeli troops on September 30 began what the military called “localized and targeted raids” against Hezbollah in Lebanon’s southern border area, a week after escalating air strikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon.
“After 45 days of bloody fighting, the enemy is still unable to occupy a single Lebanese village,” Hezbollah spokesman Mohammad Afif told a news conference in south Beirut, a stronghold of the movement and a repeated target of Israeli air raids.
Hezbollah, armed and financed by Iran, had on October 23 issued a similar statement that said Israel’s army “has not been able to fully establish its control or completely occupy any village” in southern Lebanon.
Israel has said its aim is to make its northern border safe for the return of tens of thousands of Israelis displaced when Hezbollah began cross-border fire, which it described as support for Hamas Palestinian militants in Gaza, more than a year ago.
Reuters