According to reports, a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah is expected within hours.
Strikes by the IDF on Hezbollah leadership have been devastating as Israel has eliminated much of the top leadership of both Hamas and Hezbollah.
In September, it was announced that senior Hezbollah commander Ibrahim Aqil was killed in an airstrike in Lebanon’s capital, Beirut. Aqil was indicated in the 1983 bombing of the US Marine Corps barracks in Beirut, which killed 241 service members, and in the 1984 bombing of the U.S. Embassy in Beruit, which killed 63 people.
The IDF also eliminated Hezbollah’s long-time leader, Hassan Nasrallah, and Nabil Kaouk, deputy head of the group’s Central Council.
Israel and the Iran-backed group Hezbollah appear set to halt the war that has killed almost 3,800 people in Lebanon over the last year and left about 16,000 others wounded. President Biden is expected to announce Tuesday that the U.S. helped secure a ceasefire in Lebanon, ending the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, according to a U.S. official.
Under the deal, a full and permanent ceasefire would be implemented immediately. There will be 60 days permitted for the full withdrawal of Israeli forces — a gradual withdrawal to allow the Lebanese forces to mobilize and move in to secure the area, but the trigger time is immediate, set to take effect later Tuesday.
The first peel-off of Israeli troops was to begin within the next 10 days.
Hezbollah is expected to pull its forces and heavy weapons back about 20 miles from the Israeli border, to the Litani River.
According to a report, an official in Netanyahu’s office indicated that the prime minister had convened the country’s security cabinet to discuss the proposal.
A US official tells CBS News that President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team has been updated about the pending Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire deal and views the plan favorably.
This story is developing.
