The US, the EU and even Iran demanded this. Israel agreed to a ceasefire with Hezbollah

After weeks of negotiations, the decision on which the safety of millions of Israelis and Lebanese depends has finally been made. On November 26, the Israeli security cabinet agreed to a 60-day ceasefire with Hezbollah in Lebanon, which was demanded by Israel's ally – the United States and the European Union – on the one hand, and by Iran, which supports Hezbollah, on the other.

“We are pushing as hard as we can to reach a diplomatic solution,” said Matthew Mille, spokesman for the US State Department. – There is no excuse not to implement a ceasefire. Otherwise, Lebanon will fall apart, emphasized the head of European Union foreign policy Josep Borrell.

Little is known about the details of the agreement, but it is to be based on the provisions of UN Resolution 1701, which ended the war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006.

– Our goal is clear: to push Hezbollah north of the Litani River, so that it cannot later return to the southern areas. We have learned the lessons from 2006, says Danny Dandon, Israel's ambassador to the UN.

After 2006, Hezbollah expanded its infrastructure along the border with Israel anyway, although the resolution required the group to withdraw its fighters from an area south of the Litani River, about 30 kilometers from the so-called Blue Line, a demilitarized zone established by the United Nations that is the unofficial border between Lebanon and Israel.

The resolution was never fully implemented, and both sides accused each other of violating it over the years. But now that's about to change. The implementation of the agreement is to be monitored by a larger number of international entities. The UN peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon is also to be strengthened, and the government in Beirut has pledged to keep Hezbollah away from the border with Israel.

– As the Israelis withdraw from these areas, we will send an additional five thousand soldiers there. They will join about five thousand soldiers who are already on the ground, says Abdallah Bou Habib, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lebanon.

In return, Israel can withdraw its forces from Lebanon within 60 days, but this time it also wants to have guarantees that if Hezbollah breaks the agreement and returns to the border areas, Israeli troops will have the right to take military action against this group.

– The test of any agreement is not the promises, but their enforcement. In the case of Lebanon, it is to prevent Hezbollah from moving south from the Litani River and rebuilding its forces, says Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar.

Within Israel itself, reports of the agreement were met with mixed reactions. Itamar Ben Gvir, the far-right minister of national security, called them a “big mistake” and a wasted opportunity to root out Hezbollah. Local Israeli politicians also emphasize that such an agreement will not guarantee the safety of nearly 60,000 residents who were evacuated from the north of the country due to Hezbollah attacks. The Lebanese themselves also express doubts about compliance with the agreement.

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– Both sides are tired of all this. But will the contract be enforced? This is in the hands of the Lebanese state, but international resolutions must also be introduced to prevent Israeli fighter jets from flying in our skies whenever they want, comments Selim Ayoub, a mechanic from the southern suburbs of Beirut.

Israel launched a land offensive in Lebanon almost two months ago in response to the rocket attacks by Hezbollah, which has been ongoing since October last year and supported Hamas' activities. As a result of this conflict, over three thousand people died in Lebanon and about one hundred in Israel.

However, the ceasefire in Lebanon will not have a direct impact on the war in the Gaza Strip, and the Palestinians fear that Israel's attention may now focus solely on attacks on Gaza.