Israel boycotts Mechanism meeting
Israel did not send any representative to the meeting of the U.S.-led Mechanism ceasefire committee on Wednesday, which marked the first such boycott since the creation of the panel, al-Akhbar newspaper reported on Thursday.
“The committee’s chair, U.S. general Joseph Clearfield, was meanwhile absent for the second time and was substituted by an officer from his assistant team,” the daily said.
“The committee’s meeting produced nothing, in a repetition of the previous meeting that was held on December 7,” al-Akhbar added.
Sources in Beirut linked to the U.S. side meanwhile justified what happened by saying that “the U.S. generals are currently preoccupied with the deployment plans in the region and have no time to follow up on a frozen file.”
“The Americans are not hiding their desire to give up the current framework and they’re discussing with the Lebanese Army the need to overcome the complex of the venue and U.N. participation and to move to fruitful meetings through direct negotiations,” the sources said.
26 February 2026, 18:51
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The International Monitoring and Implementation Mechanism (IMIM), commonly referred to as "the Mechanism," was established in late November 2024.
Its creation was a central component of the U.S.-brokered ceasefire agreement between Israel and Lebanon, which was signed on November 26 and officially went into effect on November 27, 2024. Key Details of its Formation: Purpose: It was designed to "reformulate and enhance" the existing tripartite mechanism (previously including UNIFIL, Israel, and Lebanon) to provide a more robust oversight of the ceasefire terms.
Composition: The body is chaired by the United States and includes representatives from France, Israel, Lebanon, and the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).
Original Leadership: At its inception, it was headed by Major General Jasper Jeffers of U.S. Central Command and American mediator Amos Hochstein.
26 February 2026, 18:53
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The sources indicate that the US has no idea what it is doing. "They don't want to know," said the sources, an apparent reference to President Trump.
