U.S. envoy Tom Barrack has called for direct negotiations between Lebanon and Israel, noting that Hezbollah cannot be disarmed by force.

He also voiced major concern over a renewal of Israel’s war on Lebanon.

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said the mission of the civilian who was included in a committee monitoring the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire is more important than the name.

"The important thing for me is what he will do," Berri told online news website Asas Media in remarks published Friday, adding that what is important is that former Lebanese Ambassador to the United States, Simon Karam succeed in ending Israel's violations and occupation, and in returning the Lebanese prisoners.

A delegation of the U.N. Security Council and U.S. envoy Morgan Ortagus met Friday with President Joseph Aoun, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam. The three leaders urged the delegation to pressure Israel to respect a year-old ceasefire.

Aoun said after the meeting, in a statement on the X platform, that the delegation expressed its support for stability in Lebanon through the implementation of international resolutions, and the willingness to help in supporting the Lebanese Army, completing its deployment, and implementing the state's monopoly on arms.

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) said Friday that a series of Israeli strikes on south Lebanon Thursday were in the peacekeepers' area of operations, warning Lebanese actors against "any reaction that could aggravate the situation further."

UNIFIL condemned in a statement the strikes as "clear violations of Security Council resolution 1701" and urged the Israeli army to avail of the liaison and coordination mechanisms available to them.

The Trump administration has been tying to foster dialogue between Israel and Lebanon for nine months, U.S. news portal Axios has reported, hours after Lebanese and Israeli civilian representatives held their first talks in decades under the auspices of a year-old ceasefire monitoring mechanism.

A U.S. official told Axios the U.S. hoped Wednesday’s meeting would help de-escalate tensions between the two sides and help to avoid a resumption of the war in Lebanon.

The Lebanese Army on Thursday refuted Iranian allegations about the affiliation and loyalty of some of its soldiers.

“The Army Command categorically denies these reports and affirms that all its members adhere to a clear and unwavering military doctrine and are completely loyal to the military institution and the country,” it said in a statement.

With “heartfelt respect,” U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa on Thursday extended his appreciation to “the Government and people of Lebanon for the gracious welcome offered to His Holiness Pope Leo XIV during his recent visit.”

The U.S. Embassy in Beirut said the inclusion of Lebanese and Israeli civilian officials in the U.S.-led ceasefire monitoring committee, known as the Mechanism, can lead to “durable peace.”

“Senior officials convened for the 14th iteration of the Pentalateral on December 3 in Naqoura to assess ongoing efforts to reach an enduring cessation of hostilities arrangement in Lebanon,” the Embassy said.

Lebanese and Israeli civilian representatives met for the first time in decades on Wednesday under the auspices of a year-old ceasefire monitoring mechanism.

The two sides met at the U.N. peacekeeping force's headquarters in Lebanon's Naqoura near the border with Israel, where the guarantors of the November 2024 ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah regularly convene.

A United Nations Security Council delegation will visit Lebanon on Friday and Saturday after visiting Syria in the first-ever visit to the country.

Slovenian U.N. ambassador Samuel Zbogar told a press conference on Monday that "the visit to Lebanon is the first official visit of the Security Council to the Middle East in six years".