According to sources familiar with Hezbollah’s thinking, the Lebanese group will stop firing on Israel if its Palestinian ally Hamas agrees to a truce proposal in Gaza. However, this ceasefire will depend on Israeli forces not continuing to shell Lebanon. The exchange of fire between Hezbollah and Israel began after a Hamas attack in southern Israel, leading to an Israeli offensive in Gaza.
In late November, there was a temporary truce between Hamas and Israel, which resulted in a week of calm along the Lebanese-Israeli border. Currently, Hamas is considering a new proposal for a 40-day ceasefire, agreed upon during talks in Paris. If Hamas approves the truce, Hezbollah will adhere to it and immediately stop operations in the south, just as it did previously. However, if Israel continues to shell Lebanon, Hezbollah will continue fighting.
Hezbollah’s leader, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, has stated that the group’s attacks on Israel will only cease when Israel’s aggression against Gaza ends. Hezbollah is part of several Iran-aligned groups in the Middle East that have joined the conflict to support Palestinians under Israeli bombardment.
Efforts have been made by foreign envoys to find a diplomatic resolution to the fighting and prevent further escalation. France presented a written proposal aimed at ending hostilities, including negotiations to settle the disputed Lebanon-Israel border and a withdrawal of Hezbollah’s elite unit from the border area. However, Hezbollah has maintained that no discussions regarding southern Lebanon will take place until a permanent ceasefire is agreed upon for Gaza.
While most of the hostilities have been limited to the border zone, Israeli fighter jets recently conducted strikes in the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has indicated that Israel plans to increase attacks on Hezbollah if a ceasefire in the Gaza conflict is achieved, with the goal of securing a Hezbollah withdrawal from the border region either through diplomacy or force.
