**Jerusalem, Israel** – Israeli officials have indicated that there has been “certain progress” in negotiations regarding a ceasefire in Lebanon, although the Iran-backed Hezbollah group claims it has yet to receive any formal peace proposal.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar remarked on Monday that while there are advancements in discussions, the primary challenge lies in enforcing any potential ceasefire agreement. He stated that Israel is collaborating with the United States on the diplomatic efforts. “We will be ready to be there if we know, first of all, that Hezbollah is not on our border, is north of the Litani River, and that Hezbollah will not be able to arm again with new weapons systems,” Saar added. The Litani River is located approximately 30 kilometers (20 miles) north of the Israeli border.
Saar’s comments followed a declaration by newly appointed Defence Minister Israel Katz, who claimed that the Israeli military had achieved victory over Hezbollah and identified the elimination of its leader, Hassan Nasrallah, as a major success. “Now it is our job to continue to put pressure in order to bring about the fruits of that victory,” Katz stated on Sunday.
In Beirut, a Hezbollah official acknowledged an increase in diplomatic activity but noted that neither the group nor the Lebanese government had received any new proposals. “There is a great movement between Washington and Moscow and Tehran and a number of capitals,” said Mohammad Afif during a televised news conference. He emphasized that the current phase involves testing the waters and engaging in preliminary discussions, but nothing concrete has emerged yet.
According to Yedioth Ahronoth, Israel’s leading newspaper, there have been exchanges of draft proposals between Israel and Lebanon through U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein, suggesting progress in the negotiations.
Since late September, Israel has deployed troops in southern Lebanon to secure its northern border against Hezbollah rocket attacks and to facilitate the return of more than 60,000 displaced civilians to their homes in the north. Additionally, Israel has intensified airstrikes across Lebanon, targeting areas such as the eastern Bekaa region, southern suburbs of Beirut, and regions where Hezbollah maintains influence. The Israeli military has claimed significant losses for Hezbollah, including the assassination of several senior leaders, with Nasrallah reportedly killed on September 27.
Israel expanded its military operations into Lebanon with the goal of dismantling Hezbollah’s infrastructure following over a year of frequent exchanges of gunfire along the Lebanon-Israel border. Hezbollah has been a key supporter of the Palestinian Hamas group, which operates in Gaza.
However, the extensive destruction caused by the Israeli military—ranging from the mass demolition of residential buildings to the forced displacement of tens of thousands of people—has raised concerns about Israel’s true intentions, suggesting a systematic campaign to reshape the region. Sultan Barakat, a senior professor in public policy at Qatar’s Hamad Bin Khalifa University, noted, “I think there is a level of coordination going on regionally and potentially nationally. [They are] only after the infrastructure of the Shia community in Lebanon.”
Barakat added, “There is a contradiction between saying we won the war and then wanting to continue in this war unless the hidden agenda is really to increase the pressure on Lebanon… to a level where Lebanon becomes irrelevant in any future deal.”