US welcomes Lebanon’s push for direct talks with Israel amid escalating conflict with Hezbollah

U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa on Friday welcomed Lebanese President Joseph Aoun’s proposal for direct negotiations with Israel, aimed at ending the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Iranian-backed terrorist militia Hezbollah. The escalation followed renewed Hezbollah attacks on Israel after U.S. and Israeli strikes on the Islamic Republic of Iran on Feb. 28.

“We appreciate the importance of the issue for the president and the importance of his responsibility in finally deciding that he must meet with the Israelis, because matters are not resolved without talking,” Issa said.

“Each party has their point of view of how meetings start,” he added, saying that Israel has decided to continue striking Hezbollah targets across Lebanon.

“That means Lebanon has to decide whether it can meet the Israelis in this case,” Issa said.

French President Emmanuel Macron recently signaled that Lebanon could potentially recognize Israel as part of a peace agreement between the two countries.

“The Lebanese government has signaled its willingness for direct discussions with Israel... France is ready to facilitate these discussions by hosting them in Paris,” Macron stated.

However, Hezbollah appears to be the main obstacle to peace between Lebanon and Israel. Like the Iranian regime, Hezbollah is ideologically committed to the destruction of the State of Israel. Israel has repeatedly warned Hezbollah to stay out of the conflict with Iran. However, following the group’s intensified attacks on northern Israeli communities this month, Israel launched large-scale strikes on Hezbollah’s headquarters in southern Beirut and on targets throughout southern Lebanon.

Hezbollah presents itself as a “resistance” movement and the defender of Lebanon and the wider Islamic world. However, the Lebanese government and much of its population blame Hezbollah for dragging the country into a war with Israel.

The Lebanese government quickly condemned Hezbollah’s attack on Israel and announced that it had outlawed the terror group’s military activities.

“Regardless of who is behind it, the rocket fire from southern Lebanon is an irresponsible and suspicious act that jeopardizes Lebanon's security and safety and provides Israel with pretexts to continue its aggression,” the Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam wrote on 𝕏 in early March.

“We will not allow the country to be dragged into new adventures, and we will take all necessary measures to apprehend the perpetrators and protect the Lebanese people,” Salam vowed.

In addition to its massive aerial strikes on Hezbollah targets, the IDF recently launched a limited ground operation in southern Lebanon. The goal of the military offensive is to push Hezbollah’s forces further away from the Israeli border and provide additional security for Israeli border communities.

France, which has traditionally held strong ties with Lebanon, has expressed reservations about the Israeli military ground operation. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot conveyed France’s position during a meeting with Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar in Jerusalem. While opposing Israel’s ground offensive, Barrot stressed that Lebanon’s conventional military must disarm Hezbollah forces.

“There is ​no obvious short-term way out of ​the ongoing regional escalation, which has in some ways been unfolding since October 7, ​2023,” Barrot told the media, “but this must in no ​way serve as a pretext for inaction.”

Israeli Foreign Minister Sa’ar told Barrot, “The Lebanese government and its army are not taking any meaningful action against Hezbollah, neither militarily nor in other aspects.” He also said that he “presented Israel’s precise operations against Hezbollah operatives, while making efforts to minimize harm to the civilian population as much as possible.”

“Israel will continue to defend itself and its citizens and will act decisively against all those who seek its elimination,” Sa’ar added.