The US confirmed a second round of talks between the two countries amid the destruction of Lebanese towns by Israeli forces.
Published on 20 April 2026
The United States will host a second round of talks between Lebanon and Israel on Thursday, the State Department has confirmed, as both countries push for direct talks amid regional tensions.
The talks, to be held at the State Department, will be the first since a fragile ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel took effect last week.
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“The United States welcomes the productive partnership that began on April 14,” a State Department spokesperson told Al Jazeera. “We will continue to facilitate direct, good-faith discussions between the two governments.”
Lebanese and Israeli officials met last week for the first time in decades, angering Hezbollah and its allies.
But after the ceasefire came into force, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said again on Friday that Beirut would continue on the path of negotiations with Israel.
“These talks are not a weakness. This is not a retreat. This is not a concession,” Aoun said in a televised address.
“This is a decision that stems from the strength of our belief in our rights and the care of our people and our responsibility to protect our country in every possible way.”
Hezbollah described the talks as part of a series of “losing concessions” being made to Israel by the Lebanese government.
Hezbollah chief Naim Qassim said last week, “We reject talks with the occupying Israeli entity. These talks are futile. These talks require Lebanese consent to change direction.”
“Nobody has the right to lead Lebanon toward a vision without internal consensus among its constituents, which has not happened.”
Despite the ceasefire, Israel continues to bomb neighborhoods in border villages in southern Lebanon to create a destroyed zone, which it is calling the “Forward Defense” line.
Israeli officials have openly stated that their goal is to repeat the destruction of entire cities in Gaza in southern Lebanon.
Aoun has vowed that his government will work toward Israel’s complete withdrawal from Lebanon without renouncing any part of the country’s territory.
The Lebanese government has insisted on excluding Lebanon from broader talks between the US and Israel, arguing that only Beirut can negotiate for itself.
However, Iran has insisted that Lebanon be included in a comprehensive ceasefire.
On Friday, Trump said he had “prevented” Israel from attacking Lebanon, but Israeli attacks have continued, including destruction of civilian infrastructure in the south.
Israel said it killed “terrorists” operating in the town of Bin Jbeil in southern Lebanon on Monday.
For its part, Hezbollah said it detonated an explosive device against a convoy of Israeli military vehicles near the town of Deir Serian in the eastern sector of the border.
