Israeli cabinet to vote on Lebanon ceasefire deal after Netanyahu approves ‘in principle’, source says

CNN
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The Israeli cabinet will vote on a ceasefire deal in Lebanon on Tuesday, Benjamin Netanyahu’s spokesman told CNN, after a source familiar with the matter said the Israeli prime minister had approved the plan “in principle.”

Netanyahu signaled his potential approval of the new ceasefire with Hezbollah during a security consultation with Israeli officials on Sunday night, the source said.

On Monday, his spokesman told CNN that the Israeli cabinet will vote on the proposed deal on Tuesday and said it is expected to pass.

Sources familiar with the talks previously said talks appear to be moving positively toward a deal, but acknowledged that as Israel and Hezbollah continue to exchange fire, a misstep could derail the talks.

But later Monday night, a Lebanese official familiar with the discussions said a ceasefire was expected to be announced “within 24 hours.”

Reports that a deal was nearing were met with a mixed reaction in Israel. Itamar Ben Gvir, the country’s far-right national security minister, called the deal a “huge mistake” and said it would be “a historic missed opportunity to eradicate Hezbollah.” Ben Gvir has also long worked to oppose potential ceasefire agreements between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

Benny Gantz, who resigned from Israel’s war cabinet in June over Netanyahu’s handling of the war in Gaza, urged the prime minister to make public the details of the ceasefire agreement.

“It is up to the people of the north, the fighters and the citizens of Israel to know,” Gantz said.

Residents of northern Israel – many of whom have been displaced by the conflict, along with residents of southern Lebanon across the border – have also expressed concern about the potential deal.

Nizan Zeevi, who lives north of Kyriat Shimona in the village of Kfar Kila, told CNN that many residents view the agreement as a “surrender agreement.”

“Our government will sign a very irresponsible agreement that is just a repeat of the same agreement” signed to end the war in 2006, Zeevi said. He said he feared the deal would eventually allow fighters in the Radwan Force, Hezbollah’s special operations unit, to move closer to the border again and “live right next door” to him and his family.

“It is my duty to my children to make sure there is no chance of another October 7,” he said, referring to the Hamas attacks on southern Israel more than a year ago.

US envoy Amos Hochstein said in Beirut last week that a cease-fire agreement between Israel and Lebanon was “within our reach” but that it was ultimately “the decision of the parties.”

He met Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, the interlocutor with Hezbollah in the talks, and said there had been “constructive” and “very good discussions to narrow the gaps.”

“We have a real opportunity to end the conflict,” he added last week. “The window is now.” He traveled from Lebanon to Israel on Wednesday to try to bring the talks “to a conclusion”.

The US-backed proposal aims to achieve a 60-day cessation of hostilities, which there is some hope could form the basis of a lasting ceasefire.

Later Monday, White House spokesman John Kirby said Hochstein’s discussions had been “constructive.” He said the Biden administration believes “the trajectory of this is moving in a very positive direction,” but cautioned that “nothing is done until everything is done.”

State Department spokesman Matthew Miller was similarly cautious, telling reporters Monday that just because a deal is “close” doesn’t mean it will happen. He said the process had been “incredibly frustrating.”

Israel’s Home Front Command also warned of an increased risk of Hezbollah rocket fire ahead of Tuesday’s decisive vote and on Monday updated its defensive guidelines for several parts of northern Israel.

On Sunday, CNN analyst and Axios reporter Barak Ravid quoted a source as saying that Hochstein had told the Israeli ambassador in Washington on Saturday that if Israel did not respond positively in the coming days to the ceasefire proposal, he would withdraw from the mediation effort.

Hochstein’s trip to the region followed Beirut responding “positively” to a US-backed proposal to stop the warMikati said last week, adding that large parts of the draft agreement were resolved.

Israel launched a major military offensive in Lebanon in mid-September after months of tit-for-tat border attacks, which started on October 8 last year when Hezbollah attacked Israeli-controlled territory in solidarity with Hamas and Palestinians in Gaza.

Since then, Israel has launched a ground invasion, killing a number of Hezbollah leaders – including one of its founders, Hassan Nasrallah – and wounding thousands of people in an attack with exploding pagers.