U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday said Israel and Lebanon had agreed to a 10-day ceasefire and that he had invited the leaders of both countries for talks. “I just had excellent conversations with the Highly Respected President Joseph Aoun, of Lebanon, and Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu, of Israel. These two Leaders have agreed that in order to achieve PEACE between their Countries, they will formally begin a 10 Day CEASEFIRE at 5 P.M. EST,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social. 

'First time in 34 years'

Trump, who claimed this would be the 10th war he had halted, said officials from Israel and Lebanon had met “for the first time in 34 years” in Washington DC on Tuesday in the presence of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. “It has been my Honor to solve 9 Wars across the World, and this will be my 10th, so let's, GET IT DONE!” the US President said in the post. 

The U.S President added that apart from the ceasefire, he had invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun for what he described as the “first meaningful talks” between the two sides since 1983.

“I have directed Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Rubio, together with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Dan Razin' Caine, to work with Israel and Lebanon to achieve a Lasting PEACE,” he said. The US President further added that both Israel and Lebanon “want to see peace”, and said he believed it would “happen quickly.” 

Fighting in Lebanon has continued amid the fragile ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran, with Netanyahu claiming that Israel’s conflict with Hezbollah was not part of the truce. Days after those remarks, the Israeli Prime Minister appeared to shift his stance, confirming negotiations with Beirut. However, in a video message on Wednesday, Netanyahu said Israel continued to strike Lebanon. Following this, Lebanese President Aoun refused to speak to Netanyahu on Thursday, the Associated Press cited a government official familiar with the matter as saying. 

The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Aoun conveyed the message during a call with Rubio, adding that the U.S. “understands Lebanon’s position.”