BEIRUT: Hezbollah had communicated to the Lebanese authorities its acceptance of a ceasefire with Israel the same day its leader, Hassan Nasrallah, was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut, a Lebanese government source said on Wednesday, AFP reported.
Previously, Hezbollah had said it would only accept a ceasefire if there was also one with Hamas in Gaza.
Hezbollah informed the Lebanese authorities on September 27, just before the attack on Nasrallah, that it had agreed to an international initiative for a truce, the source said as reported by AFP.
The source, speaking to AFP, said Hezbollah’s ceasefire acceptance was conveyed to the Lebanese government through Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, a close ally of the group.
On the day of the communication, Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati was attending the United Nations General Assembly in New York, where a ceasefire proposal, led by the United States and its allies, was put forward.
According to the source, Mikati relayed Hezbollah’s position to other world leaders, and negotiators were awaiting Israel’s response. However, in a speech the same day, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed the possibility of a ceasefire, declaring that the fight against Hezbollah would continue.
Following Netanyahu’s address, Israeli forces launched a massive airstrike on Hezbollah’s stronghold in southern Beirut, resulting in Nasrallah’s death. Since then, the Lebanese government has had no direct contact with Hezbollah, the source added.
Despite the loss of its leader, Hezbollah’s deputy chief, Naim Qassem, said on Tuesday that the group remained “meticulously organized” and had endured “painful blows.” He also reaffirmed Hezbollah’s support for a ceasefire in Lebanon.
