Iran president says Lebanon truce a key condition for ending war

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said that a Lebanon ceasefire was one of the key conditions of the Islamic Republic’s 10-point plan for securing an end to the Middle East war, the ISNA news agency reported Wednesday.

Pezeshkian told French counterpart Emmanuel Macron in a phone call that Tehran’s “acceptance of the ceasefire is a clear sign of Iran’s responsibility and serious will to resolve conflicts through diplomacy”, ISNA said.

He added that “establishing a ceasefire in Lebanon has been one of the key conditions of Iran’s 10-point plan”.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that Israel remains prepared to confront Iran if necessary, despite a truce reached between the United States and Iran.

“Let me be clear: We still have objectives to complete, and we will achieve them — either through agreement or through renewed fighting,” Netanyahu said in a televised statement.

“We are prepared to return to combat at any moment required. Our finger remains on the trigger. This is not the end of the campaign, but a step along the way to achieving all our objectives.”

“Iran enters this pause battered, weaker than ever.”

Netanyahu also hit back at opposition leaders who chastised him for agreeing to the truce before Israel achieved its objectives in the war.

“As you know, last night a temporary two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran came into effect, in full coordination with Israel,” Netanyahu said in a televised statement.

US President Donald Trump will continue to discuss with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the idea of including Lebanon in an Iran war ceasefire deal, his spokeswoman said Wednesday.

“This will continue to be discussed, I am sure, between the president and Prime Minister (Benjamin) Netanyahu, the United States and Israel and all of the parties involved,” Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters.

The US-Iran truce does not include Lebanon, which was drawn into the war after Iran-backed group Hezbollah launched attacks on Israel.