Lebanon awaits truce proposals after US envoy expresses hope

13/11/2024 18:10

        Lebanon is awaiting concrete ceasefire proposals, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri was quoted as saying on Wednesday, after a senior U.S. official said he saw "a shot" at a truce soon in the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.
        
        The Israeli military struck the Hezbollah-controlled southern suburbs of Beirut for a second consecutive day, after pounding the area with airstrikes on Tuesday. Smoke rose over Beirut.
        
        An Israeli airstrike in the early hours of Wednesday also killed six people in Aaramoun, in the mountains some 15 km south of Beirut, Lebanon's health ministry said.
        
        Israel launched a major air and ground offensive against the Iran-backed group Hezbollah in late September after nearly a year of cross-border conflict in parallel with the Gaza war.
        
        White House envoy Amos Hochstein told Axios that he thinks "there is a shot" at a truce in Lebanon soon. "I am hopeful we can get it."
        
        His comments point to a last-ditch bid by the outgoing administration of U.S. President Joe Biden to secure a Lebanon ceasefire as diplomacy to end the Gaza war appears adrift, with mediator Qatar having suspended its role.