Israel and Hezbollah Reach a Ceasefire Agreement

The United States and France help broker this agreement

On November 26, 2024, United States President Joe Biden announced that Israel and Lebanese militant group Hezbollah had reached a ceasefire agreement.

The agreement was brokered by France and the United States and will go into effect on November 27.

This agreement marks the first step in ending the latest conflict between Israel and Hezbollah over the past year since the Gaza war of October 7 of 2023. As an act of solidarity with the people of Gaza in the aftermath of October 7, Hezbollah launched a series of rocket attacks into northern Israel, which has displaced thousands of Israeli citizens.

The Israelis responded in kind with a massive aerial campaign against Hezbollah that resulted in the assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and the slaughter of thousands of civilians across Lebanon. Additionally, Israel launched a limited ground invasion of southern Lebanon in early October.

Biden announced that Israel's security cabinet voted for the agreement by a 10-1 margin, Biden announced that he had talked to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati to forge this agreement.

“This is designed to be a permanent cessation of hostilities," Biden stated. "What is left of Hezbollah and other terrorist organizations will not be allowed to threaten the security of Israel again.”

Israel is expected to gradually pull out its forces over the course of 60 days as Lebanon's army takes control of territory close to its border with Israel to guarantee that Hezbollah does not rebuild its military assets there, Biden noted.

“Civilians on both sides will soon be able to safely return to their communities," he said.

Netanyahu believes the ceasefire would let Israel concentrate on tackling the alleged threat Iran poses, replenishing dwindling arms supplies, giving the Israeli army a chance to rest, and isolating Hamas.

“We will enforce the agreement and respond forcefully to any violation. Together, we will continue until victory," Netanyahu declared.

"In full coordination with the United States, we retain complete military freedom of action. Should Hezbollah violate the agreement or attempt to rearm, we will strike decisively."

It’s good to see that this conflict is being wrapped up. The Middle East does not need another conflict for the US to step into. The incoming Trump administration should use this ceasefire to push for a conclusion to this conflict. From there, it should try to extricate itself from the Middle East and focus on real national security issues such as securing the US’s southern border with Mexico.

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José Niño is a freelance writer based in Austin, Texas.

You can contact him via Facebook and Twitter. Get his e-book, The 10 Myths of Gun Control at josealbertonino.gumroad.com. Subscribe to his “Substack” newsletter by visiting “José Niño Unfiltered” on Substack.com.