Israel's initial dismissal of the US "breakthrough" Lebanon ceasefire deal creates confusion

 

Smoke billows from the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted the southern Lebanese village of Choukîne on Thursday, September 26. 

Rabih Daher/AFP/Getty Images

Senior US officials were practically triumphant Wednesday night: The United States and a large number of its allies had nailed down a proposal after days of feverish talks that would put in place a ceasefire across the Israel-Lebanon border.

In a hastily arranged call with reporters just moments after the release of a joint statement, top administration officials hailed the framework as “an important breakthrough.” The 21-day pause in fighting that the nations were proposing would give time for diplomacy and could prevent a full-fledged war from breaking out between Israel and Hezbollah.

Those officials were clear: The question was not if Israel and Hezbollah would accept the ceasefire proposal, but precisely when. Both Israel and Hezbollah were “familiar with the text,” one official said, and the US felt comfortable going public with the framework, with the understanding that both sides were ready to sign on.

But only hours later, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would throw cold water on the multi-national proposal. First, the prime minister’s office released a statement saying any reports of an imminent ceasefire were “incorrect” and that the Israel Defense Forces would continue fighting with “full force.”

Then, the prime minister himself told the press as he got off his plane in New York City:

“My policy, our policy, is clear: We continue to hit Hezbollah with all our might. We will not stop until we achieve all our goals.”

Some 24 hours after the White House’s announcement of the ceasefire proposal, there has still been no indication that Israel and Hezbollah are ready to agree to it. Israel’s initial response was clearly not the reaction the White House had anticipated, and it raised immediate question of why, if Israel was on board with the proposal, its leader appeared so eager to dismiss it.

Netanyahu’s apparent reversal amounted to a major disappointment, but for some officials it also underscored a reality that has existed for months: Netanyahu’s willingness to break publicly and openly with Biden, particularly when he faces internal political opposition in Israel.