Lebanon and Israel will begin two days of direct talks in Washington, DC, on Thursday, focused on disputed issues, as the enemy states seek an end to the decades-long conflict amid continued Israeli attacks .
The two sides held two preparatory meetings last month—the first in decades—but Thursday's discussions are expected to mark the start of full diplomatic negotiations.
Veteran Lebanese diplomat Simon Karam will lead Beirut’s delegation, which includes Lebanon's ambassador to the US, Nada Mouawad, her deputy, and a military official.
Israel's delegation will be headed by Ambassador to Washington Yechiel Leiter alongside the embassy's Middle East affairs adviser. The team also includes senior officials from the Israeli military and the National Security Council.
The talks will take place at the US State Department under the leadership of Washington's Middle East envoy Michael Needham, with the participation of US ambassadors to Israel and Lebanon, Mike Huckabee and Michel Issa.
A US State Department statement said Washington "recognises that comprehensive peace is contingent on the full restoration of Lebanese state authority and the complete disarmament of Hezbollah."
It added that the talks aim to "break decisively from the failed approach of the past two decades," which it said allowed armed groups to entrench themselves and undermine the authority of the Lebanese state.
Citing Israeli officials, Yedioth Ahronoth said the meeting would mark "the beginning of discussions on disputed issues."
A Lebanese official told AFP that Beirut would seek to "consolidate the ceasefire" during the talks amid ongoing Israeli violations of the April truce. "The first thing is to put an end to the death and destruction," the official said, speaking anonymously.
Israeli strikes in Lebanon have killed hundreds since the ceasefire agreement, and Israeli forces continue to occupy swathes of southern Lebanon and reduce entire towns and villages to rubble. Dual track According to Yedioth Ahronoth , discussions will focus on two tracks: a political path aimed at reaching a peace agreement between the two countries, and a security track centred on the disarmament of Hezbollah .
Israel has demanded that the group be stripped of its arsenal, a condition that Hezbollah has rejected, vowing to continue fighting until Israel ends its occupation of Lebanese territory.
Lebanon is expected to reiterate its demand for an Israeli withdrawal and an end to ongoing strikes, while Israel is expected to maintain that withdrawal is "not on the table" as long as Hezbollah continues attacks on northern Israel .
The two sides are also expected to discuss disputed border points along the Blue Line, the UN-demarcated boundary established after Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon in 2000.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun has defended the talks as necessary to end the suffering of the Lebanese people, particularly in the south. Prime Minister Nawaf Salam has ruled out normalisation with Israel, saying any agreement would amount only to a peace arrangement. No guarantees to end Israeli strikes According to information obtained by The New Arab , President Aoun instructed Lebanon's delegation to maintain close coordination with the US State Department and prioritise securing a full ceasefire before addressing other issues.
Sources said Beirut intends to focus first on halting Israeli strikes and demolition operations in border areas. Other priorities include Israel's withdrawal from occupied Lebanese territory, the release of detainees, the return of displaced residents, the deployment of the Lebanese army along the border, border demarcation, and discussions over limiting weapons to state control.
Lebanon is also expected to present a report documenting Israeli violations since the November 2024 ceasefire agreement, which was intended to end the war.
Lebanese official sources told The New Arab that Aoun remains in contact with US officials to pressure Israel to halt its attacks, though no guarantees have been secured so far.
The sources added that this round differs from previous meetings due to the higher-level political and military representation involved, warning that the current truce remains "extremely fragile" and that the risk of a broader conflict persists. Hezbollah has slammed the negotiations , calling them a "sin" and urging Beirut to limit diplomacy to indirect talks.
The negotiations could quickly reach an impasse if Israel insists on Hezbollah's disarmament as a precondition for any agreement.
On the eve of the talks, Lebanon's health ministry said 22 people, including eight children, were killed on Wednesday as Israel intensified airstrikes.
On Thursday, the Israeli military issued evacuation orders for several villages in southern Lebanon and the adjacent Western Beqaa district, areas that have come under repeated strikes.