06:30 16.4.2026
US President Donald Trump says the leaders of Israel and Lebanon will hold talks on April 16, the first such negotiations since 1993, as they seek a cease-fire to end more than six weeks of war with Iran-backed Hezbollah, a militant group and political party that controls much of southern Lebanon. It is considered a terrorist organization by the United States, while the European Union has blacklisted its armed wing.
Lebanon, however, said it had no knowledge of any such discussions.
“We are not aware of any planned contact with the Israeli side, and we have not been informed of any through official channels,” an official Lebanese source told the AFP news agency after Trump’s remarks.
“Trying to get a little breathing room between Israel and Lebanon. It has been a long time since the two leaders have spoken, like 34 years. It will happen tomorrow,” Trump wrote in a social media post late on April 15.
He did not give specifics on who will be involved in the talks or offer any other details.
Lebanon’s prime minister is Nawaf Salam and his Israeli counterpart is Benjamin Netanyahu, while the two presidents are Joseph Aoun and Isaac Herzog, respectively.
Ending the fighting in Lebanon, which broke out after US and Israeli air strikes were launched against Iran on February 28, has been a key sticking point in ending that conflict.
Source: live-blog-trump-khamenei/33640284.html?lbis=449706
Copyright (c) 2026. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.
|
|
|
Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|

![Trump Says Israel, Lebanon Leaders To Hold Discussions; Beirut Says It’s ‘Not Aware’ Of Talks [ rfe/rl banner ]](https://tbh.center/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Chinese-Led-Consortium-Secures-No-Bid-Wind-Project-in-Bosnian-Serb-Entity.gif)