Lebanon ceasefire takes effect as Switzerland talks are postponed

DUBAI/WASHINGTON: Israel and Hezbollah agreed to a ceasefire in Lebanon on Friday after an escalation in cross-border fighting had raised fresh doubts over diplomacy tied to the wider US-Iran war framework.

A senior US official said the ceasefire began at about 4pm Lebanon time, or 1300 GMT, after an exchange of fire. The official said US and Qatari negotiators worked out the arrangement with Iranian assistance. Two sources from Hezbollah and a senior Israeli official also confirmed the truce.

The development came after planned US-Iran talks in Switzerland for Friday were called off. Those negotiations had been seen as important for sustaining efforts linked to reopening the Strait of Hormuz to global shipping. A Swiss foreign ministry statement said the talks had been postponed and that Switzerland remained ready to facilitate them, while preparatory work was continuing.

US President Donald Trump later told NBC News he had spoken with Israel and urged it to accept the ceasefire. An NBC reporter quoted him on X as saying:

"You just gotta calm down sometimes and use your head,"

The reporter added that Trump did not say whether he had spoken directly with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Talks delayed as fighting flared

Preparations for technical discussions at the Swiss resort of Buergenstock had been well advanced when a White House spokesperson said on Thursday that US Vice President JD Vance would no longer attend. The cancellation added uncertainty to the timing of negotiations that are considered important to the broader interim arrangement reached earlier this week.

The conflict in Lebanon could affect the negotiations because a halt to the fighting there is a condition for the wider US-Iran accord. The memorandum of understanding signed this week by the Iranian and US presidents deferred discussion of Iran’s nuclear programme and other difficult issues, giving the two sides 60 days to reach a more durable settlement or extend the interim arrangement.

The broader interim deal requires the United States, Iran and their allies to declare an immediate and permanent end to military operations on all fronts, including Lebanon. Israel, however, has said it is not a party to that agreement.

Hezbollah lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah, citing Iran, said any further negotiations depended on a comprehensive ceasefire being in place. He also said Lebanon’s government should reject direct talks with Israel while Israeli attacks continue.

Strikes reported before and after truce

A senior Israeli official said Israel would regard the situation as no longer a time of war if Hezbollah stopped attacking, but added that Israeli forces would remain in southern Lebanon, where Israel has occupied an area along its northern border.

In remarks attributed to that official, the position was stated as follows:

"If Hezbollah does not attack us, then for us it is not a time of war,"

Two Lebanese security sources said Israel launched around a dozen airstrikes in the first hour of the ceasefire, though none were recorded after 5pm. Earlier, Lebanon’s health ministry said heavy airstrikes since midnight on Friday on 11 southern towns had killed 18 people and wounded 33.

The Israeli military said four soldiers were killed in an incident in Lebanon, without giving further details. It had carried out attacks on what it described as Hezbollah operatives and infrastructure in several southern areas, saying those actions were in response to repeated ceasefire violations by the Iran-backed group.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun condemned the Israeli attacks but said the escalation would not derail efforts to secure a comprehensive ceasefire.

Wider war and diplomatic terms

The regional war expanded when Hezbollah opened fire on Israel on March 2, after which Israel launched an offensive against the group and invaded southern Lebanon. The Iran war itself began on February 28 with US and Israeli airstrikes on Iran and has killed at least 7,000 people, most of them in Iran and Lebanon.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, in a phone call with Pakistan’s deputy prime minister on Friday, said the United States would be responsible for any breach of its commitments under the deal, including ending the fighting in Lebanon, according to Iran’s foreign ministry.

Oil prices had fallen since the interim deal was signed as tankers resumed movement through the Strait of Hormuz, which before the blockade carried nearly a fifth of the world’s crude oil and liquefied natural gas supplies. A body set up by Iran to manage the waterway said on Friday it would waive planned transit fees during the 60-day negotiation period.

The Islamabad Memorandum signed this week envisages sanctions relief for Iran, the release of assets worth tens of billions of dollars and immediate US waivers for Iranian oil exports. It also gives negotiators 60 days to decide the status of Iran’s nuclear programme, unless that period is extended, and to establish a $300 billion reconstruction fund for Iran alongside other financial incentives.

Trump also defended the agreement again after criticism in Washington, including from some Republican allies in Congress who have questioned whether he gave up too much to end a war that was unpopular with most Americans ahead of November’s midterm elections.