Israeli Ambassador to the U.S.: Will Not Discuss Ceasefire with Hezbollah

Xinhua News Agency, Jerusalem, April 11 (Reporter Pang Xinyi, Feng Guorui) Israeli media reported early on the 11th that Israel's Ambassador to the United States, Michael Oren, confirmed that Israel agreed to "begin formal peace negotiations" with Lebanon on the 14th in Washington, but refused to discuss a ceasefire with Hezbollah.

The Israel Times website cited Oren's statement, reporting that Oren had his first conversation on the 10th with Lebanon's Ambassador to the U.S., Randa Hamadeh Mouawad, informing her that even while negotiating with Lebanon, Israel was not prepared to halt its military operations against Hezbollah.

Oren stated that Hezbollah "continues to attack Israel, which is the main obstacle to peace between the two countries," and Israel refuses to discuss a ceasefire with Hezbollah.

The Israel Times reported that Lebanon insists that a ceasefire should be a prerequisite for the meeting between the two sides on the 14th. According to a report by the U.S. Axios news website on the 10th, citing two informed sources, the governments of Lebanon and the U.S. requested that Israel "pause" its operations against Hezbollah before the negotiations begin.

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu delivered a video address on the evening of the 9th, stating that he had instructed the Israeli government to engage in direct negotiations with the Lebanese government, but that Israel would not have a ceasefire in Lebanon and would "continue to strike Hezbollah with full force." The Lebanese presidential office issued a statement on the evening of the 10th saying that Lebanon and Israel agreed to hold their first meeting at the U.S. State Department on the 14th to discuss announcing a ceasefire and the date for starting negotiations under U.S. mediation.