Overview
- U.S. officials said Friday that the April 16 cessation of hostilities will run for 45 more days, with political talks set for June 2–3 and a Pentagon-led security track starting May 29.
- Fighting persisted as Israel struck targets near the southern city of Tyre, where evacuation orders followed blasts that Lebanon’s health ministry said wounded at least 37 people and damaged a clinic and a hospital.
- Hezbollah was not part of the Washington talks, and both it and the Israeli military reported new attacks, including an Israeli statement that another soldier was killed in southern Lebanon, bringing the total since early March to 19.
- The talks feature two tracks run by the United States, with Lebanese envoy Simon Karam and Israeli official Yossi Draznin leading delegations that aim to define border security arrangements and state-to-state commitments.
- Lebanese authorities report roughly 2,900 deaths and about 1.2 million people displaced since March, and the added 45 days could ease civilian risk only if violations decrease and steps toward curbing Hezbollah take hold.