Hezbollah Rejects Washington's Ceasefire Proposal

Hezbollah has rejected a ceasefire proposal between Lebanon and Israel that emerged from US-brokered negotiations. Despite Washington's announcement that an agreement had been reached, fighting continues and Israel has said it will not withdraw from its positions in southern Lebanon for the time being.

Under the US proposal, Hezbollah would halt rocket attacks and withdraw its fighters from areas near the Israeli border. The leader of the Shia movement, Naim Qassem, has firmly rejected the agreement, describing it as an attempt to weaken Lebanon, and stressed that resistance would continue as long as Israel occupied any part of Lebanese territory.

Qassem has also insisted that any ceasefire must include the withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon, where Israel has established a security zone it considers necessary to protect its northern communities from Hezbollah attacks. The movement has warned that Israeli towns will not be safe as long as attacks on Lebanese villages continue.

Iran has also entered the dispute. Officials from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps have said the minimum condition for an end to the fighting is for Israel to return to the positions it held before the current conflict began.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz announced on Thursday that the army would continue operations against Hezbollah targets. The Israeli armed forces issued new evacuation warnings to residents of southern Lebanon and confirmed that attacks on the movement's infrastructure and positions were continuing.

(reuters, max)