First day of Lebanon-Israel talks 'positive', US official says
The United States on Thursday sought to extend a shaky ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon as a ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel -- considered to still be in place despite hundreds of deaths in Israeli strikes -- ends on Sunday.
Israel has pounded Lebanon and invaded its south in response to retaliatory fire from Hezbollah following Israel's killing of Iran's supreme leader at the start of the war on February 28.
Israeli and Lebanese ambassadors held the first of two days of talks at the State Department, with Israel bringing along military officers.
"We had a full day of productive and positive talks," a senior State Department official said, expecting more to say on Friday.
A Lebanese official told AFP that the country would seek "the consolidation of the ceasefire" and said: "The first thing is to put an end to the death and destruction."
The two sides last met on April 23 at the White House, where Trump announced a three-week ceasefire extension between the countries, which have technically been at war for decades.
Trump at the time made the bold prediction that during the three-week extension he would welcome Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun to Washington for a historic first summit between the countries.
The summit has not happened, with Aoun saying a security deal and an end to Israeli attacks were needed before such a landmark meeting.
Source: Agence France Presse
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