Beirut [Lebanon], April 15: Israeli and Lebanese representatives met on Tuesday in Washington for direct political-level talks for the first time since 1983.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio was seen in photos ahead of the meeting alongside the Lebanese ambassador to the United States, Nada Hamadeh Moawad, and the Israeli representative in Washington, Yechiel Leiter. Lebanese government sources said the meeting was expected to last about an hour.
Israel and Lebanon are officially at war. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is seeking a lasting peace agreement with Lebanon and the disarmament of the Lebanese Hezbollah militia, which is allied with Iran.
However, the Shiite militia rejects this, and previously called on the government in Beirut to cancel the talks. At the start of the meeting, it reportedly fired rocket salvos towards Israel. The Israeli military warned that Hezbollah's shelling could spread to northern Israel. The Lebanese government is aiming for a ceasefire and demanding the withdrawal of Israeli troops from southern Lebanon. The government in Beirut committed in 2024 to disarming Hezbollah, but has failed to achieve this, outmatched by the powerful militia.
Hezbollah has been launching attacks on Israel since the early stages of the current war in support of its ally, Iran.
Meanwhile, fierce fighting between Israeli troops and the Lebanese Hezbollah militia continued in the southern Lebanese town of Bint Jbeil on Tuesday.
Lebanese security sources said heavy shelling had caused significant damage throughout the day, while the Israeli military reported that 10 soldiers had been injured, some of them seriously, in an overnight attack by Hezbollah. The border town of Bint Jbeil is considered a Hezbollah stronghold.
According to the Israeli military report, three Hezbollah members opened fire on Israeli soldiers. The attackers were reportedly killed.
Hezbollah sources said its fighters had launched a suicide attack at an Israeli tank. Contact with the besieged Hezbollah members was last reported in the morning, after which it was lost, they said. Dozens of fighters are said to be still trapped in the town.
Source: Qatar Tribune
