Israel and Lebanese group Hezbollah have agreed to a ceasefire beginning at 4 p.m. local time on Friday, several media outlets have reported, according to a senior U.S. official, after hostilities between both sides had escalated sharply overnight in Lebanon.

"Hezbollah and Israel have agreed to a ceasefire," the official said, adding that negotiators for the U.S. and Qataris worked out the deal with help from Iran.

“We understand that after the exchange of fire earlier today, Israel and Hezbollah are now in a ceasefire.”

The intensification of violence in Lebanon strained the U.S.-Iranian interim agreement signed on Wednesday to end the wider war in the Middle East.

A Hezbollah lawmaker earlier told Reuters that Iran had informed the group that talks with Washington could not continue without the implementation of a comprehensive ceasefire.

Overnight, Israeli airstrikes killed at least 47 people in Lebanon, the Lebanese health ministry reported, while four Israeli soldiers were killed in south Lebanon.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei denounced Israel’s latest attacks, saying Israel’s “continued war-making” would have “serious and immediate consequences”.

Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accused Israel of wanting "permanent war" following remarks from its far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir saying "all Lebanon must burn".

"This is not a rant by a random genocidal lunatic. It's a public post by the national security minister of the Israeli regime. The genocidal death cult headquartered in Tel Aviv is a threat to all of humanity. It threatens all humans. Its only interest is permanent war," Araghchi said on X.

Earlier, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israeli troops will stay in Lebanon "as long as necessary".

The Iran deal requires the United States, Iran, and their allies to declare an immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including Lebanon. (Agencies)



Edited by Azam Khan