Published On 1/5/2026
The United States, through its embassy in Beirut, urged a direct meeting between Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, considering that “the time for hesitation is over.”
The embassy said in a statement yesterday, Thursday: “Lebanon stands at a crossroads. Its people have a historic opportunity to restore their country and chart their future as a truly sovereign and independent nation.”
She added that a direct meeting between President Aoun and Prime Minister Netanyahu, facilitated by US President Donald Trump, “will give Lebanon the opportunity to obtain concrete guarantees regarding its full sovereignty, territorial integrity, border guarantees, humanitarian support, reconstruction, and the re-extension of full state authority over every inch of its territory, with a guarantee from the United States.”
There is American optimism about holding this tripartite meeting, as Trump previously said that the meeting in the Oval Office between the ambassadors of Lebanon and Israel to the United States – and with the participation of the American ambassadors to Lebanon and Israel – “went well,” adding that the peace file in Lebanon is “relatively easy” compared to other files that Washington is working on now.
Trump expressed his aspiration to hold the next meeting between the Lebanese and Israeli presidents, pointing out that they will come to Washington during the extended ceasefire period, which Lebanese officials have ruled out happening due to Israel’s occupation of 6% of Lebanese territory and its continued raids on it, according to what was reported by Axios.
The American President explained that the United States would support Lebanon directly to enable it to “protect itself from Hezbollah,” and the Israeli Broadcasting Authority quoted a source as saying that Washington and Tel Aviv had asked Beirut to cancel a previous decision prohibiting negotiations with Israel.
Lebanon and Israel – which have been officially at war since 1948 – held a round of talks in Washington on April 14, which was the first of its kind since 1993.
Two days after those talks, the United States declared a 10-day truce in the war that led to the deaths of more than 2,400 people in Lebanon and the displacement of more than a million.
This comes in conjunction with President Joseph Aoun’s condemnation of the ongoing Israeli “violations” of the ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah, calling for “pressure” on Israel to stop strikes on civilians and medics.
Israel continues to occupy areas in the south, and launches military strikes on villages in the south, as a result of which at least 15 people were killed on Thursday, according to what the Ministry of Health announced.
Israel and Hezbollah are exchanging accusations of violating the ceasefire that has been in effect since April 17, which Washington announced after it hosted the direct meeting at the ambassadorial level between the two countries.
The strikes launched by Israel in Lebanon have led to more than 2,500 deaths and more than a million displaced since March 2, while 1.2 million people face the risk of acute food insecurity, according to the World Food Programme.
