Iran

As a ceasefire is accepted by both Washington and Tehran, actions taken by Israel, including ongoing bombings of Hezbollah in Lebanon, could pose a hindrance to conflict resolution, according to a political analyst.

“Israel is certainly a thorn in the side of the Americans,” said Georges Mercier in an interview with LCN on Saturday.

Since the ceasefire agreement between Iran and the United States on Wednesday, Tehran seeks to include Lebanon in the terms of the deal, while Israel believes Hezbollah is excluded. Calls to expand the truce have increased, with Israeli strikes on Beirut described as unprecedented in five weeks of conflict, quickly destabilizing the agreement.

“At the beginning, from the Iranian side, it was thought that the ceasefire covered Israel’s actions against Hezbollah in Lebanon,” explained the political analyst. “It was later learned that from the American side, it was not quite what had been agreed upon.”

According to Mercier, Israel hurriedly bombed Lebanon following the ceasefire announcement.

“Because the day the Americans say that Israel must indeed cease its operations in Lebanon, the Hebrew state will have no choice but to do so, considering the extent of the power the Americans hold over Israel,” he emphasized.

Talks that did take place

Iranian and American officials began negotiations in Pakistan on Saturday to establish a lasting ceasefire. These discussions mark the highest level of engagement between the two countries since 1979.

“It’s very significant. It’s been 47 years since we’ve had such high-level meetings between the two countries,” Mercier noted.

Despite persistent mistrust between the two countries, the ceasefire is holding up so far.

“When it was announced on Tuesday, what did we say? From the American side, they want ships to pass through the Strait of Hormuz again. From the Iranian side, they wanted Israel to stop strikes against Hezbollah. Two elements that did not happen,” he pointed out.

“Nevertheless, they are discussing,” he added, underscoring the importance of these exchanges.