Joseph Aoun was briefed on the latest Lebanon-Israel talks as Beirut confirmed negotiations would continue with an eighth round planned for September. [Getty]
Lebanon has denied reports that it is freezing negotiations with Israel, even as frustration mounts in the country over continued Israeli attacks in the south and the failure of the latest round of talks to produce significant progress.
An official Lebanese source told the Qatar News Agency (QNA) on Tuesday that negotiations had remained on track and that an eighth round was provisionally expected in early September, pushing back against reports that Beirut was considering abandoning the US-mediated process altogether.
“There is no freeze on the negotiations, and no one has officially spoken about this matter,” the source stressed, adding that the Lebanese, Israeli and US delegations had tentatively agreed during last week’s talks in Rome to meet again on 1 September, although the date has yet to be formally confirmed.
Behind that commitment lies growing unease in Beirut over a widening gap between the diplomatic process and events on the ground, where Israel has continued attacks, demolitions and bulldozing operations in southern villages despite months of negotiations.
The source described several recent developments as “concerning” and said Lebanon was pressing the United States, which is mediating the talks, to secure concrete steps before the delegations return to the negotiating table.
Beirut has presented Washington with a series of demands it wants addressed before the next round, chief among them an end to Israeli attacks in southern Lebanon, with the source saying the United States had pledged to work towards achieving progress on those issues.
Lebanon is now waiting to see what Washington can deliver, at a moment when questions about the value of continuing the negotiations without changes on the ground have become pronounced.
Official Lebanese sources told The New Arab on Monday that negotiations remained Beirut’s preferred path towards a resolution, but cautioned that Lebanon could not continue participating in successive rounds without “tangible results”, despite progress on issues including prisoners and the border.
Among the options discussed with US officials were temporarily suspending the talks, demanding that Israel take concrete measures before the next meeting, or securing guarantees that such steps would be carried out as a condition for Lebanon’s continued participation.
At the centre of the dispute is Israel’s refusal to withdraw from Lebanese territory it continues to occupy before it verifies Hezbollah’s disarmament, while Lebanon has sought an end to Israeli military operations and further Israeli withdrawals as the negotiations proceed.
Beirut is also seeking an expansion of the so-called “pilot zone” arrangement, with Lebanese officials raising Khiam, Bint Jbeil and other southern towns as possible locations for future implementation.
Concerns about Israel’s intentions deepened after the Israeli foreign ministry published a map depicting parts of southern Lebanon as Israeli territory, prompting anger across Lebanon and renewed calls from Hezbollah for Beirut to end direct negotiations. The Lebanese presidency raised the issue with both Washington and the United Nations, and Israel later removed the post on some of its social media platforms.
President Joseph Aoun was briefed on Monday by Lebanon’s chief negotiator, former ambassador Simon Karam, on the seventh round of talks in Rome and the discussions held between Lebanese, American and Israeli officials.
Israel’s war on Lebanon since March has killed more than 4,300 people, according to the Lebanese health ministry.