U.S. President Donald Trump is growing impatient with stalled negotiations between Israel and Lebanon and may authorize Israeli military action if talks do not advance, Saudi news channel Al Hadath reported Saturday.
The discussions, mediated by the United States and France, began earlier this month in the border town of Naqoura between Israeli and Lebanese military teams. The negotiations aim to reach an agreement on the demarcation of the Blue Line, the internationally recognized border between the two countries.
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Benjamin Netanyahu, Donald Trump, Joseph Aoun
(Photo: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds / AFP, J. Scott Applewhite/ AP, Paul Saad / Shutterstock)
Israeli officials have expressed hopes that the talks could lead to normalization of ties between Israel and Lebanon, a possibility that Lebanese President Joseph Aoun has denied.
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Following the cease-fire agreement that ended the war with Hezbollah, Israel withdrew most of its forces from southern Lebanon but maintained a military presence at five strategic locations to prevent Hezbollah operatives from returning to the area.
Despite the truce, the IDF has continued targeting Hezbollah positions, particularly in the Beqaa Valley in eastern Lebanon. Recent strikes have focused on weapons production and storage facilities, as well as smuggling routes along the Lebanese-Syrian border, aimed at disrupting arms transfers to the Iran-backed terrorist group.