The current ten-day ceasefire would have expired late Sunday evening without an extension.Image: keystone
April 24, 2026, 05:29April 24, 2026, 06:29
According to US President Donald Trump, the ceasefire between the pro-Iranian Hezbollah militia in Lebanon and Israel is to be extended by three weeks. He announced this on his Truth Social platform after a meeting of representatives of the hostile neighboring countries Israel and Lebanon in the White House.
The current ten-day ceasefire would have expired late Sunday evening without an extension. The Hezbollah militia did not initially comment.
Trump announces meetings with Netanyahu and Aoun
“The United States will work with Lebanon to help it protect itself from Hezbollah,” Trump said. He said in response to a reporter’s question that he was also considering Iran’s financing of the militia. As long as Iran finances Hezbollah, there will be no agreement in the Iran war. “This is a must,” said Trump.
He will also receive Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun in the near future. He plans to hold the meeting during the extended ceasefire. Trump called the previous meeting in the White House historic. According to him, on the US side, Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio were also present, as were the US ambassadors to Israel and Lebanon. Israel’s ambassador to the USA, Jechiel Leiter, and the Lebanese ambassador Nada Hamadeh Moawad were also present.
Rare meeting in Washington
There had already been direct negotiations between Israel and Lebanon in Washington last week: their ambassadors to the USA met at the US State Department for talks – the first meeting of this kind in decades. Lebanon wants to curb Hezbollah’s influence in the country and is not an active party to the militia’s war with Israel. The Lebanese government had recently increased the pressure on Hezbollah.
Deadly incidents continue to occur in southern Lebanon despite the ceasefire. The current ceasefire agreement states that Israel should refrain from “offensive” operations against targets in Lebanon. The country is therefore allowed to defend itself against planned, imminent or ongoing attacks. Both sides accuse each other of violating the agreement.
Trump: Israel will proceed “cautiously.”
At the White House, Trump emphasized Israel’s right to defend itself. “But they will do it carefully, and they will do it precisely,” Trump said. Shortly before, Israel had again come under fire from Lebanon, according to the army. The air defense intercepted the projectiles. The launch pad was then bombed, it was said that night. Three “Hezbollah terrorists” who had unsuccessfully fired a rocket at an Israeli military aircraft had previously been eliminated.
According to Netanyahu, Israel is seeking a permanent peace agreement with Lebanon and the disarmament of Hezbollah. The Lebanese government wants to achieve a permanent ceasefire and a withdrawal of Israeli soldiers from the south of the country. However, Hezbollah has so far refused to hand over its weapons, and Israeli troops have been stationed in southern Lebanon for a year and a half – so far with no prospect of a rapid withdrawal. A comprehensive peace agreement is therefore questionable.
Shortly before Trump’s announcement, senior Hezbollah official Mahmoud Komati told local TV stations that representatives of the Lebanese government had no right to negotiate with Israel to end the fighting. Direct negotiations meant recognizing an enemy “who is killing our people.” Regardless of the outcome of the negotiations, we will not accept further Israeli “occupation” of southern Lebanon,” Komati said. “If the ceasefire ends, the war will continue without a time limit,” said the member of the militia’s Politburo.
Lebanon: “We can’t live with a buffer zone”
Lebanon’s Prime Minister Nawaf Salam urged the US government to increase pressure on Israel over its ground troops in southern Lebanon. Lebanon cannot sign any agreement that does not include a “complete withdrawal” of Israeli troops, Salam told the Washington Post. One “cannot live with a so-called buffer zone” in which residents cannot return to their homes in the south.
Israel speaks of a “security zone” that is intended to protect northern Israel from Hezbollah attacks. According to Netanyahu, this area, which is approximately ten kilometers wide, will extend from the Mediterranean to the Syrian border. Critics speak of an illegal occupation and possible war crimes. Israel’s army systematically destroyed bridges and roads in the south and, according to Israeli reports, also houses with bulldozers.
Fighting is closely related to the Iran War
The war in Lebanon is closely related to the Iran war because Iran is Hezbollah’s main supporter and the militia also acts in the interests of or on instructions from Tehran. In response to the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in an airstrike, Hezbollah also resumed shelling Israel in early March. There were deaths. The Israeli Air Force responded with massive airstrikes that killed more than 2,000 people and displaced around 1.2 million.
In the Iran War, Trump also recently unilaterally extended an existing ceasefire shortly before it expired. The weapons should therefore remain silent until Tehran comes to the negotiating table with a unified proposal. Whether this happens remains to be seen. Both sides threatened that they were ready to resume fighting. Against this background, the USA is further increasing its military presence in the region with a third aircraft carrier.
USA assembles third aircraft carrier in Middle East
The US regional command Centcom announced on X that the “USS George HW Bush” is now in the Indian Ocean. The last time the US had three aircraft carriers under Centcom’s jurisdiction was in 2003, when the US was preparing to invade Iraq, the Wall Street Journal quoted a US official as saying.
Trump had made opening the Strait of Hormuz, which was largely blocked by Tehran, a condition for the ceasefire, while at the same time maintaining his own blockade of Iranian ports. Trump now ordered his country’s navy to fire on and sink any ships that were planting mines in the strait, which is important for global oil trade.
At the same time, minesweepers would clean the Strait of Hormuz even more intensively of explosive devices, Trump wrote on Truth Social. The US news portal Axios quoted a US official and another source as saying that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Navy had laid more mines there this week.
Israel ready to resume war on Iran
According to Defense Minister Israel Katz, Israel is “ready to resume the war against Iran.” His country is waiting for the green light from the USA, he said during a situation assessment on Thursday evening, according to his office. The goals have already been set. Among other things, it is about finally destroying the family “dynasty” of the new supreme leader Moschtaba Khamenei, son of the slain Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Another goal is the destruction of the economic infrastructure, including energy and power systems. Katz spoke of taking Iran “back to the Stone Age.” Trump expressed himself similarly weeks ago. (sda/dpa)