Ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah comes into force
It is now past 4am local time in Tel Aviv and Beirut, and 2am GMT. That means the 60-day ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah is now in force.
If it holds, it represents a major milestone in the 14-month-old war in Lebanon, and in what Joe Biden called a “historic” moment as he announced the deal from the White House earlier on Tuesday.
The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, endorsed the ceasefire after his full cabinet approved the deal on Tuesday evening despite opposition from his far-right allies. In televised remarks, Netanyahu said he was ready to implement the deal, but added that Israel would retain “complete military freedom of action” in the event of an infringement by Hezbollah.
Under the deal’s terms, Israel will withdraw entirely from southern Lebanon, while Hezbollah will move its heavy weaponry north of the Litani River, about 16 miles (25km) north of the border.
During the transition phase, the Lebanese army will deploy to the buffer border zone alongside the existing UN peacekeeping force. Longstanding border disputes will be discussed after the 60-day withdrawal period.
“This is designed to be a permanent cessation of hostilities. What is left of Hezbollah and other terrorist organizations will not be allowed, I emphasise, will not be allowed to threaten the security of Israel again,” Biden said.
Fighting continued down to the final hour before the ceasefire took effect, with reports of strikes on south Beirut after the Israel army issued an evacuation warning. That came after the IDF and Hezbollah traded attacks on multiple fronts in the preceding hours (see earlier post here).
Key events
Despite a warning from the Israeli military (see earlier post here) that it was not yet safe to do so, streams of cars carrying people displaced from southern Lebanon in recent months began heading south early on Wednesday after the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah came into force.
Reuters reports dozens of cars leaving the port city of Sidon south of Beirut about 4:00 a.m. local time (0200 GMT) and heading deeper into southern Lebanon.
The Biden administration kept president-elect Donald Trump’s incoming administration closely apprised of its efforts to broker the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hezbollah that took effect early Wednesday, according to the outgoing Democratic administration.
Trump’s team, meanwhile, was quick to claim credit for the rare spot of good news for a Democratic administration that’s been dragged down by the grinding Mideast conflict, reports the Associated Press.
“Everyone is coming to the table because of President Trump,” Mike Waltz, Trump’s choice for his national security adviser, said in a post on X on Tuesday, shortly before the Israeli cabinet signed off on the agreement.
The Biden administration’s reported coordination with Trump’s team on its efforts to forge the ceasefire in Lebanon is perhaps the highest-profile example of cooperation in a sometimes choppy transition period.
Some more world leaders have been voicing support for the ceasefire:
German foreign minister Annalena Baerbock welcomed the deal, hailing it as “a ray of hope for the entire region”.
“People on both sides of the border want to live in genuine and lasting security,” Baerbock said in a statement, calling the deal “a success for diplomacy”.
A top UN official sounded a note of caution, saying that “considerable work lies ahead” to implement the deal.
“Nothing less than the full and unwavering commitment of both parties is required,” UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, said in a statement.
A view from Beirut after the ceasefire had come into effect:
What does this mean for a ceasefire in Gaza?
Bethan McKernan has the following:
Importantly for the Israelis, Hezbollah has dropped its demand that a ceasefire in Lebanon is contingent on ending the fighting in Gaza.
Since a truce in the Gaza war collapsed after a week last November, ceasefire negotiations have repeatedly failed. Qatar, a major mediator between Israel and Hamas, announced earlier this month it was quitting its role until both parties showed “willingness and seriousness” in the talks.
Resettling or permanently reoccupying Gaza is not official Israeli policy, but senior defence officials recently told the Haaretz newspaper that the government was aiming to annex large parts of the territory rather than negotiate an end to the war.
The question that has the region on edge is whether the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah militants will hold.
The ceasefire calls for an initial two-month halt to fighting and requires Hezbollah to end its armed presence in southern Lebanon, while Israeli troops are to return to their side of the border over the next 60 days. An international panel led by the United States will monitor compliance, while Lebanon’s national army and Unifil, the UN peacekeeping force, will be tasked with filling the void.
The ceasefire does not address the devastating war in Gaza, where Hamas is still holding dozens of hostages and the conflict is more intractable.
There appeared to be lingering disagreement over whether Israel would have the right to strike Hezbollah if it believed the militants had violated the agreement, something prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted was part of the deal but which Lebanese and Hezbollah officials have rejected.
As the 4am ceasefire threshold stipulated by President Biden passed, the situation appeared relatively calm in Israel, the New York Times reported. Hezbollah had not set off air raid sirens in the country by firing rockets and missiles since before midnight.
The quiet contrasted with some of the other scenes created by recent truces between Israel and militant groups, which saw both sides engage in minor exchanges of fire at roughly the same time those agreements were set to go into effect.
There were signs of apparent celebration in Beirut and no reported violations shortly after the ceasefire took effect, the Associated Press reported.
Some Israelis close to the border have expressed doubts.
“In my opinion, it would be a serious mistake to sign an agreement as long as Hezbollah has not been completely eliminated,” student Maryam Younnes, 29, told AFP.
Israeli military spokesperson Avichay Adraee said Israeli forces remained deployed in their positions inside southern Lebanon “as the ceasefire comes into effect and in accordance with its terms”.
He warned displaced Lebanese residents from the country’s south that they could not return immediately. “We will update you when it is safe to return to your homes,” he said in a post on social media.
Ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah comes into force
It is now past 4am local time in Tel Aviv and Beirut, and 2am GMT. That means the 60-day ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah is now in force.
If it holds, it represents a major milestone in the 14-month-old war in Lebanon, and in what Joe Biden called a “historic” moment as he announced the deal from the White House earlier on Tuesday.
The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, endorsed the ceasefire after his full cabinet approved the deal on Tuesday evening despite opposition from his far-right allies. In televised remarks, Netanyahu said he was ready to implement the deal, but added that Israel would retain “complete military freedom of action” in the event of an infringement by Hezbollah.
Under the deal’s terms, Israel will withdraw entirely from southern Lebanon, while Hezbollah will move its heavy weaponry north of the Litani River, about 16 miles (25km) north of the border.
During the transition phase, the Lebanese army will deploy to the buffer border zone alongside the existing UN peacekeeping force. Longstanding border disputes will be discussed after the 60-day withdrawal period.
“This is designed to be a permanent cessation of hostilities. What is left of Hezbollah and other terrorist organizations will not be allowed, I emphasise, will not be allowed to threaten the security of Israel again,” Biden said.
Fighting continued down to the final hour before the ceasefire took effect, with reports of strikes on south Beirut after the Israel army issued an evacuation warning. That came after the IDF and Hezbollah traded attacks on multiple fronts in the preceding hours (see earlier post here).
Strikes on south Beirut after Israel army evacuation warning – report
Down to the final half-hour before the ceasefire comes into effect and AFP is reporting strikes on south Beirut after the Israel army’s evacuation warning.
“Urgent warning to residents of the Beirut area,” army spokesperson Avichay Adraee had earlier said in a post on X, telling people in the Bachoura area in the city centre to leave, as well as “all residents in the southern suburb area”, specifically in Ghobeiry.
Foreign ministers from G7 countries threw their strong support behind an immediate ceasefire between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah but sidestepped the question of whether to enforce an international arrest warrant for Israel’s leader over the war in Gaza, the Associated Press reports.
In their final communique, the Group of Seven ministers demanded Israel “facilitate full, rapid, safe and unhindered humanitarian assistance in all its forms” to Palestinians in Gaza, warning that its year-long assault had led to unprecedented food insecurity.
But they didn’t refer explicitly to The Hague-based international criminal court and its arrest warrants on charges of crimes against humanity for Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defence minister, Yoav Gallant.
The warrants said there was reason to believe Netanyahu and Gallant have used “starvation as a method of warfare” by restricting humanitarian aid and have intentionally targeted Palestinian civilians in Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza – charges Israeli officials deny.
Italy had put the ICC warrants on the official G7 meeting agenda, even though members were split on the issue and the right-wing government of Premier Giorgia Meloni, a strong supporter of Israel, said they were politically motivated.
The US, Israel’s closest ally, isn’t a member of the court and has called the warrants “outrageous.” All the other G7 countries are signatories and are obliged to respect and implement the court’s decisions.
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier outlined his rationale for agreeing to a ceasefire in Lebanon, in a recorded video address.
He provided three main reasons: to focus on the threat from Iran; replenish depleted arms supplies and rest tired reservists; and to isolate Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that triggered war in the region when it attacked Israel on 7 October last year.
“They were counting on Hezbollah to fight alongside them. Now they are left alone. The pressure on them will increase and this will help to free our hostages,” he said.
The United States Central Command (CENTCOM), said it carried out an airstrike earlier against an “Iranian-aligned militia weapons storage facility in Syria”, in response to an attack on US forces in the area the previous day.
In a brief statement it said the purpose of the strike was to “degrade their [Iranian-aligned forces] ability to plan and launch future attacks on US and Coalition forces who are in the region”, and said that in its assessment there were no civilian casualties.
There are more details on the Israeli strikes late on Tuesday which targeted Lebanon’s three northern border crossings with Syria for the first time.
The strikes, Reuters reports, came moments after U.S. President Joe Biden announced that a ceasefire would come into effect on Wednesday to halt hostilities between Lebanese armed group Hezbollah and Israel.
Syria’s Red Crescent said a volunteer was killed and another was injured “as they were performing their humanitarian duty of rescuing the wounded early on Wednesday”. The strike damaged several ambulances and work points, it added in a statement.
Syrian state TV reported 18 people were injured, some in critical condition, in an Israeli strike on the Arida border crossing, with the wounded transported to nearby hospitals, while casualties were also reported in a separate Israeli strike on the Dabousieh border crossing with Lebanon.
The Israeli military did not immediately comment. It has previously stated that it targets what it says are Iran-linked sites in Syria as part of a broader campaign to curb the influence of Iran and its ally Hezbollah in the region.
Terms of the ceasefire
The 60-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah is due to go into effect at 4am local time (0200 GMT) on Wednesday.
Under the deal’s terms, Israel will withdraw entirely from southern Lebanon, while Hezbollah will move its heavy weaponry north of the Litani River, about 16 miles (25km) north of the border.
During the transition phase, the Lebanese army will deploy to the buffer border zone alongside the existing UN peacekeeping force. Longstanding border disputes will be discussed after the 60-day withdrawal period.
The US is expected to be a key security guarantor. American troops will not be committed to the Israel-Lebanon border but the US, France and its allies would provide the “necessary assistance” to ensure the deal is implemented “fully and effectively”, US President Joe Biden said. He said the ceasefire was designed to lead to “a permanent cessation of hostilities”.
Importantly for Israel, Hezbollah dropped its demand that a ceasefire in Lebanon was contingent on ending the fighting in Gaza. Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would “maintain full freedom of military action” in Lebanon “with the United States’ full understanding”.
“If Hezbollah violates the agreement and tries to arm itself, we will attack,” Netanyahu said.
Lebanon’s prime minister says ceasefire a ‘fundamental step’ towards regional stability
Lebanon’s prime minister, Najib Mikati, earlier welcomed a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah during a call with the US president, Joe Biden, on Tuesday.
A series of posts on X from Mikati described the proposal as a “fundamental step towards restoring calm and stability in Lebanon and enabling displaced persons to return to their towns and cities”.
He thanked the US and France for their involvement, and reiterated his government’s commitment to “strengthen the army’s presence in the south”. Mikati said:
While I value the joint efforts of the United States and France in reaching this understanding, I reaffirm the government’s commitment to implementing UN security council Resolution 1701, enhancing the presence of the Lebanese Army in the South, and cooperating with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil).
News of the Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire deal has been welcomed by world leaders.
The UK’s prime minister, Keir Starmer, called for the ceasefire to be turned into “a lasting political solution”, adding that Britain and its allies will continue to be at the “forefront of efforts to break the ongoing cycle of violence” to achieve a “long-term, sustainable” peace in the Middle East.
The president of the EU commission, Ursula von der Leyen, described it as “very encouraging news”.
French President Emmanuel Macron said that a ceasefire deal agreed between Israel and Lebanon should “open the path” for an ending of the war in Gaza.
UN secretary-general António Guterres said “he hopes that this agreement can put an end to the violence, destruction and suffering the people of both countries have been experiencing”.
Israel and Hezbollah trade attacks just hours before agreed ceasefire
Both sides appeared intent on trading attacks in the final hours before an agreed 60-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah comes into force.
Israeli airstrikes continued to pound Beirut even as Biden announced the ceasefire deal late on Tuesday. Israel’s military issued more evacuation warnings for Beirut’s southern suburbs through the night. Several airstrikes were reported in Beirut.
“Urgent warning to residents of the Beirut area,” army spokesperson Avichay Adraee said in a post on X early on Wednesday, telling people in the Bachoura area in the city centre to leave, as well as “all residents in the southern suburb area”, specifically in Ghobeiry.
Hezbollah said it launched drones at “sensitive military targets” in Tel Aviv on Tuesday evening, after deadly Israeli strikes in Beirut and as news of a ceasefire deal was announced.
“In response to the targeting of the capital Beirut and the massacres committed by the Israeli enemy against civilians,” Hezbollah launched “drones at a group of sensitive military targets in the city of Tel Aviv and its suburbs”, the Iran-backed group said in a statement.
Israeli airstrikes killed at least 10 people in central Beirut on Tuesday, Lebanon’s health ministry said. At least seven people were killed and 37 others injured after Israel launched attacks on 20 targets on the Lebanese capital in just 120 seconds, it said.
Israeli strikes late on Tuesday also targeted Lebanon’s three northern border crossings with Syria for the first time, Lebanon’s transport minister Ali Hamieh told Reuters.
The strikes came moments after the US president, Joe Biden, announced that a ceasefire in Lebanon would come into effect at 4am local time (0200 GMT) on Wednesday.
Opening summary
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the Middle East crisis.
At 4am local time (0200 GMT), we are expecting a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah to come into effect. The deal was announced by Joe Biden on Tuesday, after Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said his ministers had approved it.
“This is designed to be a permanent cessation of hostilities,” Biden said.
Lebanon’s prime minister, Najib Mikati, has welcomed the deal as a “fundamental step towards restoring calm and stability in Lebanon and enabling displaced persons to return to their towns and cities”.
The US, EU, UN and G7 had all pushed for a halt in the fighting between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah after more than a year of violence.
Biden and the French president, Emmanuel Macron, said the ceasefire would protect Israel from Hezbollah and create the conditions for a “lasting calm”. Macron later said the deal could “open the path” for an end to the war in Gaza.
In the hours before the ceasefire, Hezbollah said it launched drones at “sensitive military targets” in Tel Aviv following deadly Israeli strikes in Beirut.
Here is our full report:
And these are the main developments so far today:
-
Joe Biden, the US president, announced a highly anticipated ceasefire to end the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. In remarks from the White House Rose Garden, Biden hailed the “historic” deal and said it was designed to be a “permanent cessation of hostilities”.
-
The 60-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah is due to go into effect at 4am local time (0200 GMT) on Wednesday. The US is expected to be a key security guarantor. American troops will not be committed to the Israel-Lebanon border but the US, France and its allies would provide the “necessary assistance” to ensure the deal is implemented “fully and effectively”, Biden said.
-
Under the deal’s terms, Israel will withdraw entirely from southern Lebanon, while Hezbollah will move its heavy weaponry north of the Litani River, about 16 miles (25km) north of the border. During a 60-day transition phase, the Lebanese army will deploy to the buffer border zone alongside the existing UN peacekeeping force. Longstanding border disputes will be discussed after the 60-day withdrawal period.
-
Importantly for Israel, Hezbollah dropped its demand that a ceasefire in Lebanon was contingent on ending the fighting in Gaza. The Israel-Hezbollah deal will not have any direct effect on the fighting in Gaza, where US efforts to broker a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas have not led to a deal. “Just as the Lebanese people deserve a future of security and prosperity, so do the people of Gaza,” Biden said during his address on Tuesday. Asked if he would be able to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza before leaving office, Biden crossed his fingers and replied: “I think so. I hope so. I’m praying.”
-
Biden issued a joint statement with his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, pledging that both countries would work with Israel and Lebanon to ensure the agreement is “fully implemented and enforced”. “This announcement will create the conditions to restore lasting calm and allow residents in both countries to return safely to their homes on both sides of the Blue Line,” the two leaders said.
-
Biden’s announcement came after Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, endorsed the ceasefire after his full cabinet approved the deal. Israel’s national security cabinet voted to approve the deal by 10-1, according to the prime minister’s office. The far-right Israeli minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said he opposed the agreement, calling it a “historical mistake” but did not threaten to withdraw from Netanyahu’s ruling coalition.
-
Netanyahu said Israel would retain “complete military freedom of action” and would respond “forcefully” if Hezbollah violated the agreement. In televised remarks after the Israeli security cabinet voted on the proposal, Netanyahu said that there were three reasons to pursue a ceasefire: to focus on the threat from Iran; replenish depleted arms supplies and rest tired reservists; and to isolate Hamas.
-
Lebanon’s prime minister, Najib Mikati, welcomed the ceasefire deal, describing it as a “fundamental step towards restoring calm and stability”. Mikati thanked the US and France for their involvement, and reiterated his government’s commitment to “strengthen the army’s presence in the south”.
-
News of the Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire deal was welcomed by world leaders. The UK’s prime minister, Keir Starmer, called for the ceasefire to be turned into “a lasting political solution”, adding that Britain and its allies would continue to be at the “forefront of efforts to break the ongoing cycle of violence” to achieve a “long-term, sustainable” peace in the Middle East. The president of the EU commission, Ursula von der Leyen, described it as “very encouraging news”.
-
Israeli airstrikes continued to pound Beirut even as Biden announced the ceasefire deal late on Tuesday. With just a few hours to go until the ceasefire went into effect, Israel’s military issued more evacuation warnings for Beirut’s southern suburbs. Several airstrikes were reported in Beirut.
-
Israeli airstrikes struck central Beirut earlier on Tuesday as the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) issued a flurry of evacuation warnings that sent large numbers of people fleeing to safer areas. Israeli airstrikes killed at least 10 people in central Beirut on Tuesday, Lebanon’s health ministry said. At least seven people were killed and 37 others injured after Israel made strikes on 20 targets on the Lebanese capital within 120 seconds, it said.
-
At least 3,823 people have been killed and 15,859 others wounded in Israeli strikes on Lebanon since October 2023, according to the Lebanese health ministry on Tuesday. The latest figures include 55 people killed and 160 injured in strikes on Monday alone, the ministry said.
-
At least 13 people were killed in an Israeli airstrike on a school sheltering displaced families in Gaza City on Tuesday, Reuters reported, citing medics. Dozens of people were also wounded in the strike that hit the Al-Hurreya school in the Zeitoun neighbourhood, medics said. Separately, seven people were killed during an Israeli airstrike on a house also in the Zeitoun area, and an Israeli strike killed at least one man in Gaza’s southern city of Rafah, Reuters said.
-
Israel’s far-right finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, said it should occupy the Gaza Strip and halve its Palestinian population by the “encouragement of voluntary emigration”. “We can and must conquer the Gaza Strip. We should not be afraid of that word,” Smotrich said at an event late on Monday.
