Ahmed Kamel – Egypt Daily News
US President Donald Trump said Thursday that Israel and Lebanon have agreed to a 10-day ceasefire set to begin at 5 p.m. EST, following what he described as high-level discussions with both countries’ leaders.
Writing on Truth Social, Trump said he had spoken with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and that both sides agreed to pause hostilities in an effort to move toward a broader peace framework.
“These two Leaders have agreed that in order to achieve PEACE between their Countries, they will formally begin a 10 Day CEASEFIRE at 5 P.M. EST,” Trump wrote.
He added that the agreement followed rare diplomatic engagement between the two sides in Washington earlier in the week, the first such meeting in decades, with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio present.
Trump said he has instructed senior US officials, including Vice President JD Vance and military leadership, to work with both sides on achieving a longer-term settlement.
“I have directed Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Rubio, together with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Dan Razin’ Caine, to work with Israel and Lebanon to achieve a Lasting PEACE,” he said.
In a follow-up post, Trump said he plans to invite both leaders to the White House to continue negotiations, calling the talks the most significant between the two countries since the early 1980s.
He described the ceasefire as a potential opening for “meaningful peace talks,” adding that both sides want to end the conflict.
Prime Minister Nawaf Salam welcomed the announcement, describing a ceasefire as a key objective of recent diplomatic discussions held in Washington between Lebanese and Israeli representatives. He also acknowledged the human cost of the conflict, offering condolences to victims’ families and displaced civilians.
The announcement comes against the backdrop of long-standing tensions between Israel and Lebanon, which last saw a formal agreement in 1983 that collapsed during Lebanon’s civil war and was later abandoned.
If implemented, the 10-day truce would mark the most significant de-escalation between the two sides in years, though its durability remains uncertain.
