Overview
- A U.S. official said Israel and Hezbollah agreed to a ceasefire that took effect Friday afternoon after overnight exchanges that threatened the recently signed U.S.–Iran memorandum.
- Lebanon's health ministry reported around two dozen killed in southern Lebanon and the Israeli military said four soldiers were killed in the clashes, forcing towns to empty and sending civilians fleeing on crowded roads.
- The ceasefire was negotiated by U.S. and Qatari mediators with reported help from Iran because Tehran had made a halt in Lebanon a condition for continuing talks with Washington.
- The U.S.–Iran memorandum requires an immediate, permanent end to operations on all fronts, but Israeli leaders insist their forces will remain in a south-Lebanon security zone and reserve the right to respond to violations.
- Diplomacy has been disrupted: Iranian delegates and U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance postponed planned talks in Switzerland and negotiators will wait for a demonstrable halt to hostilities before resuming discussions, which will shape whether the wider accord holds.