New Delhi: A day after launching deadly strikes on Lebanon, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel was ready for negotiations with Beirut.
“In light of Lebanon’s repeated requests to open direct negotiations with Israel, I instructed the cabinet to start direct negotiations with Lebanon as soon as possible,” Netanyahu said.
Defining the scope of the talks, Netanyahu insisted that Israel would focus on “disarming Hezbollah and establishing peaceful relations between Israel and Lebanon.”
On Wednesday, hours after a two-week ceasefire was announced in the US-Israel versus Iran war, a wave of Israeli attacks lasting no more than 10 minutes killed over 200 people in Beirut, Bekaa Valley and southern part of the country.
Iran labelled it as violation of ceasefire and closed the Strait of Hormuz again.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said nothing can move forward unless the violence stops first, stressing that a ceasefire is the basic starting point for any serious talks.
“The only solution to the situation in Lebanon is to achieve a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, followed by direct negotiations between them,” Aoun said before Netanyahu’s announcement.
According to Lebanon, Israeli strikes have killed around 1,700 people and forced more than a million to flee their homes. Additionally, at least 400 Hezbollah fighters have been killed.
