Political and diplomatic developments are accelerating toward forging an understanding between Lebanon and Israel, that has started to be known as a "non-aggression pact," based on a U.S.-Saudi initiative joined by Egypt, a political source informed on the talks said.

President Joseph Aoun met Friday with French President Emmanuel Macron in Nicosia, on the sidelines of a European summit.

European leaders vowed during the summit to do more to de-escalate conflicts in the Middle East, as they prepared for discussions with regional counterparts from Egypt, Lebanon and Syria in Cyprus.

Some residents in Beirut believe south Lebanon should be included in a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.

They said a deal will not be sustainable without a lasting truce between Iran and the United States.

Lawmaker Mohammad Raad, head of Hezbollah's parliamentary bloc, called on Friday for Lebanon to "withdraw" from direct talks with Israel that U.S. President Donald Trump says have a "very good chance" of achieving peace.

"The authorities ought to feel ashamed before their people and withdraw from what has been called direct negotiations with the Zionist enemy," he said in a statement, adding that "any official contact or meeting bringing together the Lebanese and Israeli sides amid the ongoing war... will in no way enjoy Lebanese national consensus".

The UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon, UNIFIL, announced on Friday that an Indonesian blue helmet died in hospital of wounds suffered on March 29 in an attack on his base.

UNIFIL deplored the passing of Pramudia, who was critically injured following a projectile explosion in his base in Adchit Al Qusayr on the night of 29 March.

Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni on Thursday thanked Italian peacekeepers serving in southern Lebanon for donating a new crucifix to the village of Debel after the original was destroyed by an Israeli soldier in an incident that drew international criticism.

Meloni said images showing the crucifix being delivered and placed in the same spot as the one destroyed days earlier conveyed “a message of hope, dialogue and peace.”

Residents in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv expressed mixed views on talks between Israel and Lebanon, with opinions ranging from calls for diplomacy to deep skepticism over Hezbollah’s role.

“I always believe that you can talk, but you have to be prepared for war,” said Ben Kurtzer, a Jerusalem resident.

Deputy Prime Minister Tarek Mitri said ministers on Thursday discussed joining the International Criminal Court, a permanent tribunal that prosecutes individuals for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide, for “a specific period.”

The move would mark a significant shift for Lebanon, which is not a member of the court. Mitri said the move would enable the ICC to “look into war crimes and humanitarian crimes which were committed on Lebanese territory.”

The president reiterated that the U.S. continues to demand that Iran stop it’s backing of proxy groups in the Mideast, including Hezbollah in Lebanon, as part of any deal between Washington and Tehran to end the U.S. war on Iran.

"Yeah, they’ll have to cut that," Trump said to a reporter’s question about aiding the militant group. "That’s a must."

Speaking alongside Trump in the Oval Office, Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter said Israel and Lebanon “have never been next to each other more than today.”

Leiter thanked Trump and Vice President JD Vance for a day he said was decades in the making.