WASHINGTON: Lebanon and Israel are to hold new peace talks in Washington starting Thursday, as their latest ceasefire is still considered to be in place despite hundreds of deaths in Israeli strikes nearing their end. On the eve of the negotiations, Lebanon&#39;s health ministry said that 22 people, including eight children, were killed on Wednesday as Israel intensified airstrikes. The attacks pounded about 40 locations in Lebanon&#39;s south and east, according to the country&#39;s state-run National News Agency (NNA). The two nations last met on April 23 at the White House, where US President Donald Trump announced a three-week extension of the ceasefire and expressed optimism about a historic agreement. Trump at the time made the bold prediction that, within the latest ceasefire period, he would welcome Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun to Washington for a historic first summit between the countries. The summit did not happen, with Aoun saying a security deal needed to be in place and Israeli attacks needed to end before such a landmark meeting. The ceasefire, which went into effect on April 17, had been extended through Sunday. Still, Israeli strikes have killed more than 400 people during the truce, according to an AFP tally based on figures from Lebanese authorities. Israel has vowed to keep pursuing attacks against Hezbollah, the Shia armed group and political movement backed by Iran&#39;s ruling clerics, despite the ceasefire. Hezbollah began a campaign of firing into Israel in retaliation for the killing of Iran&#39;s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, at the start of the US-Israeli war on February 28. &quot;Anyone who threatens the State of Israel will die because of his actions,&quot; Netanyahu said last week after an Israeli strike in the heart of Beirut killed a senior Hezbollah commander. A Lebanese official told AFP that the country would seek &quot;the consolidation of the ceasefire&quot; during the talks in Washington. &quot;The first thing is to put an end to the death and destruction,&quot; the official told AFP on condition of anonymity. Iran has demanded a lasting ceasefire in Lebanon before any agreement to end the wider war, as it has frustrated Trump by refusing his appeals for an accord on his terms. The Middle East war has spread throughout the region, roiling the global economy and impacting hundreds of millions worldwide. Netanyahu&#39;s office said on Wednesday the Israeli leader &quot;paid a secret visit to the United Arab Emirates&quot; during the conflict and met with UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. The UAE, which has been frequently targeted by Iran during the war, subsequently said it &quot;denies reports circulating regarding an alleged visit&quot; by Netanyahu. It also denied &quot;receiving any Israeli military delegation in the country&quot;. Pressure on Hezbollah&nbsp;More than 2,800 people have died in Lebanon since Israel launched the strikes in early March, including at least 200 children, according to Lebanese authorities. Hezbollah said that the toll includes its fighters. Israel has pounded areas of Lebanon with large Shia populations, including Beirut&#39;s southern suburbs, and has invaded the border region, seizing control in an area it occupied from its 1982 Lebanon war until withdrawing in 2000. The United States has backed Lebanon&#39;s calls to maintain sovereignty over all its territory but also repeatedly pressed it to take action against Hezbollah. The United States &quot;recognizes that comprehensive peace is contingent on the full restoration of Lebanese state authority and the complete disarmament of Hezbollah,&quot; a State Department statement said. &quot;These talks aim to break decisively from the failed approach of the past two decades, which allowed terrorist groups to entrench and enrich themselves, undermine the authority of the Lebanese state, and endanger Israel&#39;s northern border,&quot; it said. It will be the third round of talks between the two countries, which have no diplomatic relations. Unlike the last round, which Trump brought to the White House, or the first round, neither Secretary of State Marco Rubio nor Trump will participate, as the president is on a state visit to China. The US mediators for the two-day meeting at the State Department will include the ambassadors to Israel and Lebanon -- respectively Mike Huckabee, an evangelical pastor and staunch supporter of Israel&#39;s regional ambitions, and Michel Issa, a Lebanese-born businessman and golf partner of Trump, as well as Mike Needham, a close aide to Rubio. Lebanon will be represented by special envoy Simon Karam, a veteran lawyer and diplomat who has fiercely defended Lebanon&#39;s sovereignty, as well as its ambassador in Washington. Israel&#39;s team will include its ambassador in Washington, Yechiel Leiter, a Netanyahu ally who is close with the Israeli settler movement in the occupied West Bank.

Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted the southern Lebanese village of Jarjouaa on May 13, 2026.

Americas

New US-mediated peace talks set to begin in Washington as fragile ceasefire nears expiration amid continued Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon.

Lebanon, Israel to hold new talks in US as ceasefire nears end 

BEIRUT: Israel carried out intense airstrikes on southern Lebanon early Saturday, killing one person, wounding seven, and briefly cutting a highway that links Beirut with parts of south Lebanon, the Health Ministry said. The pre-dawn airstrikes on the village of Msayleh struck a place that sold heavy machinery, destroying a large number of vehicles. A vehicle carrying vegetables that happened to be passing by at the time of the strikes was hit, killing one person and wounding another, according to Hezbollah&rsquo;s Al-Manar TV. The Health Ministry later said that the one slain was a Syrian citizen, while the wounded were a Syrian national and six Lebanese, including two women. The Israeli military said it struck a place where machinery was stored to be used to rebuild infrastructure for the militant Hezbollah group. Since the 14-month Israel-Hezbollah war ended in late November with a US-brokered ceasefire, Israel has carried out almost daily airstrikes killing dozens of people. Israel accuses Hezbollah of trying to rebuild its capabilities after the group suffered heavy losses during the war. Earlier this month, the UN human rights chief, Volker T&uuml;rk, called for renewed efforts to bring a permanent end to hostilities in Lebanon following the war. He said that until the end of September, they have verified 103 civilians killed in Lebanon since the ceasefire. The most recent Israel-Hezbollah war killed more than 4,000 people in Lebanon, including hundreds of civilians, and caused an estimated $11 billion worth of destruction, according to the World Bank. In Israel, 127 people died, including 80 soldiers. The war started when Hezbollah began firing rockets across the border on Oct. 8, 2023, a day after a deadly Hamas-led incursion into southern Israel sparked the war in Gaza. Israel responded with shelling and airstrikes in Lebanon, and the two sides became locked in an escalating conflict that became a full-blown war in late September 2024.

Middle East

A pre-dawn Israeli strike hit a machinery site in Msayleh early Saturday, damaging infrastructure and civilian vehicles. The strikes targeted equipment allegedly tied to Hezbollah, amid ongoing post-war tensions that persist despite last year’s ceasefire.


Israel strikes south Lebanon, killing 1 and wounding 7

<span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 700; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">CASTEL: Pope Leo XIV announced Tuesday that his first foreign trip as pontiff will take him to Turkiye and Lebanon next month, a journey he described as a &ldquo;historic opportunity&rdquo; to promote Christian unity and deliver a message of peace to the Middle East.<span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The visit, scheduled for Nov. 27 to Dec. 2, will include a stop in Iznik, Turkiye, to mark the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicea, Christianity&rsquo;s first ecumenical council recognized by both the Catholic and Orthodox churches. The trip&rsquo;s timing &mdash; on the anniversary of the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks in southern Israel &mdash; adds symbolic weight to Leo&rsquo;s message of reconciliation.<h3 style="line-height: 2; margin-top: 14pt; margin-bottom: 4pt;"><span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 700; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Unity and continuity</h3><span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Speaking to reporters as he departed the papal retreat in Castel Gandolfo, Leo called the anniversary &ldquo;a moment of authentic unity in the faith&rdquo; with Orthodox Christians, noting it was not only a time to reflect on history but to look forward.<span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The visit will also fulfill the late Pope Francis&rsquo; wish to travel to Lebanon, which has the highest proportion of Christians in the Middle East and remains the only Arab country led by a Christian head of state.<span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">&ldquo;I go to Lebanon to bring a message of peace and hope to a people who have suffered greatly,&rdquo; Leo said, adding that he seeks to advance dialogue in a region marked by decades of conflict.<h3 style="line-height: 2; margin-top: 14pt; margin-bottom: 4pt;"><span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 700; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lebanon&rsquo;s fragile recovery</h3><span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lebanon is recovering from years of economic turmoil and the aftermath of a war between Israel and Hezbollah that ended last November under a ceasefire brokered by the United States and France. Although a reformist government has raised hopes of stability, Israel continues to occupy several strategic points on the Lebanese side of the border, while tensions persist over Hezbollah&rsquo;s disarmament.<span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lebanese Maronite Patriarch Bechara Boutros Ra&iuml; welcomed the papal visit as &ldquo;a sign of unity for all Lebanese, Christians and Muslims alike.&rdquo; The last papal visit to Lebanon was by Benedict XVI in 2012.<h3 style="line-height: 2; margin-top: 14pt; margin-bottom: 4pt;"><span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 700; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Calls for peace amid tensions</h3><span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Vatican&rsquo;s announcement came as Israel marked the Oct. 7 anniversary, during which its embassy to the Holy See criticized recent remarks by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican&rsquo;s top diplomat. Parolin had denounced both Hamas&rsquo; &ldquo;inhuman massacre&rdquo; and what he called Israel&rsquo;s &ldquo;disproportionate&rdquo; response in Gaza.<span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Leo declined to weigh in on the dispute but reiterated his long-standing call for dialogue and peace. Condemning terrorism, he cited the mounting Palestinian death toll as a &ldquo;tragic reflection of how much hatred exists in the world.&rdquo;<span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">&quot;We must reduce hatred, we must return to the ability to dialogue, to seek peaceful solutions,&rdquo; Leo said.

Europe

Pope Leo XIV announced Tuesday that his first foreign trip as pontiff will take him to Turkiye and Lebanon next month, a journey he described as a “historic opportunity” to promote Christian unity and deliver a message of peace to the Middle East.

Pope Leo XIV to visit Turkiye and Lebanon on first foreign trip

BEIRUT: &nbsp;A top Iranian security official called on regional countries on Saturday to put their difference aside and cooperate closely as they face what he called &ldquo;Israel&rsquo;s conspiracies.&rdquo;&nbsp;Ali Larijani, head of Iran&rsquo;s Supreme National Security Council, spoke in Beirut where he arrived earlier Saturday to attend the anniversary of Israel&rsquo;s assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Lebanon.&nbsp;Iran has been the main backer of Hezbollah over the past four decades, supplying it with weapons and money that had turned it one of the most powerful militant groups in the region. But Hezbollah suffered heavy losses in a 14-month war with Israel, which ended with a US-brokered ceasefire in November, with much of its political and military commanders killed in Israeli strikes.&nbsp;The latest Israel-Hezbollah conflict began the day after the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on southern Israel triggered the ongoing war in Gaza. Hezbollah began firing rockets into Israel from Lebanon in support of Hamas and the Palestinians.&nbsp;In June, Israel launched airstrikes in Iran, triggering a 12-day war between the two countries that killed several key Iran&#39;s military commanders and targeted its arsenal of ballistic missiles while decimating the country&rsquo;s air defenses.&nbsp;Earlier this month, Israel struck the headquarters of Hamas&rsquo; political leadership in Qatar as the group&rsquo;s top figures gathered to consider a US proposal for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.&nbsp;&ldquo;Today, amid Israel&rsquo;s conspiracies, regional states should closely cooperate and even if there were disagreements between them, they should put these disagreements aside,&rdquo; Larjani said after a nearly one-hour meeting with Lebanon&rsquo;s Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri.&nbsp;Larijani praised the call by Hezbollah leader Naim Kassem for Saudi Arabia to open a new page after years of tense relations, calling it &ldquo;a step in the right direction.&rdquo; Referring to Israel, Larijani said Saudi Arabia and Hezbollah both &ldquo;have a common enemy.&rdquo;&nbsp;Asked about reports that Israel might launch new strikes against Iran, Larijani said, &ldquo;We are ready to face all scenarios but I don&rsquo;t think that the Israelis will behave in this stupid way.&rdquo;&nbsp;&ldquo;If they do that, they will receive strong retaliation,&rdquo; Larijani said, without elaborating.&nbsp;

In Beirut, Iran’s Ali Larijani urged unity against Israel’s “conspiracies,” condemned its assassinations and wars killing Hezbollah and Iranian commanders, and warned any new Israeli strike on Iran would be “stupid” and face strong retaliation.

Articles tagged with "lebanon"

Lebanon, Israel to hold new talks in US as ceasefire nears end

Israel strikes south Lebanon, killing 1 and wounding 7

Pope Leo XIV to visit Turkiye and Lebanon on first foreign trip

Iran's top security official urges regional states to unite against Israel