US envoy optimistic about ending Israel-Hezbollah war soon

US special envoy Amos Hochstein said during a visit to Beirut on Tuesday that an end to the Israel-Hezbollah war was "now within our grasp" as he met with officials to discuss a truce plan largely endorsed by Lebanon.

The United States and France have spearheaded efforts for a ceasefire in the war, which escalated in late September after nearly a year of deadly exchanges of fire between Hezbollah and Israeli troops.

Israel expanded the focus of its operations from Gaza to Lebanon, vowing to secure its northern border to allow tens of thousands of people displaced by the cross-border fire to return home.

Since the clashes began with Hezbollah's attacks on Israel, more than 3,510 people in Lebanon have been killed, according to authorities there.

Most of the fatalities have been recorded since late September, among them more than 200 children, according to the UN.

Following a meeting on Tuesday with Hezbollah-allied parliamentary speaker Nabih Berri, who has led mediation on behalf of the group, Hochstein told reporters he saw "a real opportunity" to end the fighting.

"I'm here in Beirut to facilitate that decision, but it's ultimately the decision of the parties... It is now within our grasp," he added.

Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem had been expected to give a speech, but the group postponed the address shortly after it was announced.

A Lebanese official said Monday that his government had "a very positive view" of the truce plan, while another said Lebanon had been waiting for Hochstein "so we can review certain outstanding points with him".

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday that Israel would continue to conduct military operations against Hezbollah even if a ceasefire was reached.

"We will be forced to ensure our security in the north (of Israel) and to systematically carry out operations against Hezbollah's attacks... even after a ceasefire", to keep the group from rebuilding, he told parliament.

Netanyahu also said there was no evidence Hezbollah would respect any ceasefire.

 Deaths in Lebanon and Israel 
 Hezbollah began its cross-border attacks in support of its ally Hamas following the Palestinian group's attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, which sparked the war in Gaza.

Hamas's attack -- the deadliest in Israel's history -- resulted in the deaths of 1,206 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.

The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said the death toll from the ensuing war had reached 43,972 people, a majority civilians. The United Nations considers the figures reliable.

Since expanding its operations to Lebanon in September, Israel has conducted extensive bombing campaigns primarily targeting Hezbollah strongholds there, though some strikes have hit areas outside the Iran-backed group's control.

The UN said Tuesday that more than 200 children had been killed in Lebanon since Israel escalated its campaign.

"Despite more than 200 children killed in Lebanon in less than two months, a disconcerting pattern has emerged: their deaths are met with inertia from those able to stop this violence," said James Elder, spokesman for the UN children's agency UNICEF.

Israel has also sent ground troops into Lebanon, while Hezbollah has continued to launch projectiles into Israel almost daily.

On Tuesday, Israel's military said some 40 projectiles were fired into central and northern Israel, lightly wounding four people.

That followed salvos on Monday that killed one woman in Shfaram and injured 10 people there and five in Israel's commercial hub of Tel Aviv.

Hezbollah said Tuesday it had launched "a salvo of missiles" at the Glilot military intelligence base in the Tel Aviv suburbs.

It also said it attacked Israeli troops in four locations in southern Lebanon, including near the flashpoint village of Khiam.

'Everyone's interest'  

State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said Monday that the United States had shared ceasefire proposals with both Lebanon and Israel.

He added that the full implementation of UN Resolution 1701, which ended the last Hezbollah-Israel war of 2006, was "what we believe is in everyone's interest".

Under the resolution, Lebanese troops and UN peacekeepers should be the only armed forces deployed in south Lebanon, where Hezbollah holds sway.

A Lebanese official said US ambassador Lisa Johnson had discussed the truce plan last week with Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati and with parliamentary speaker Berri.

If an agreement was reached, he said, the United States and France would issue a joint statement, followed by a 60-day truce during which Lebanon would redeploy troops in the southern border area.

However, Eyal Pinko, a retired Israeli navy commander and senior research fellow at the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies at Bar Ilan University near Tel Aviv, said hopes for a speedy ceasefire were "wishful thinking".

"The most important thing that is required is that there will be no Hezbollah 30 to 40 kilometers from the border so that Israel can protect itself if there is a ground maneuver," Pinko said.

"Iran and Hezbollah would not accept that."

He cautioned that Israel was still "very far from" bringing southern Lebanon under control, warning of "more surprises" to come.