Netanyahu Okays ‘Ceasefire Deal’ With Hezbollah

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has approved the emerging ceasefire deal with Hezbollah “in principle” during a security consultation with Israeli officials on Sunday night, a source familiar with the matter said.

Israel still has reservations over some details of the agreement, which were expected to be transmitted to the Lebanese government on Monday, the source said.

Those and other details were still being negotiated and multiple sources stressed that the agreement will not be final until all issues were resolved.

A ceasefire agreement will also need to be approved by the Israeli cabinet, which has not yet occurred.

Sources familiar with the negotiations said that talks appear to be moving positively toward an agreement, but also acknowledged that as Israel and Hezbollah continue to trade fire, adding that one misstep could upend the talks, CNN reports.

In recent days, Hezbollah has been considering a US-backed proposal for a 60-day pause in fighting that some hope could form the basis of a lasting ceasefire.

Israel launched a major offensive in Lebanon in mid-September following 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, killed a string of Hezbollah leaders – including one of its founders, Hassan Nasrallah – and injured thousands of people in an attack featuring exploding pagers.