Trump Claims Israel-Hezbollah Halt, Iran Talks Resume Amid Clashes

Continued fighting in Lebanon and threats to suspend U.S.-Iran negotiations have raised the stakes for any interim agreement that could reduce regional violence. President Trump stated on Monday that indirect contacts produced commitments to stop attacks between Israel and Hezbollah, while also asserting that talks with Tehran were advancing. Those claims followed days of Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon and Hezbollah rocket fire into northern Israel.

Trump posted on Truth Social that he spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and, through intermediaries, with Hezbollah representatives. He wrote that both sides agreed all shooting would stop. A separate Lebanese embassy statement in Washington described a proposed mutual cessation: Hezbollah would halt attacks on Israel in exchange for an end to Israeli strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs, with the framework later extended across Lebanon. Netanyahu’s office responded that Israel would still strike Beirut targets if Hezbollah continued firing on Israeli cities.

Iranian officials had warned earlier that any U.S. ceasefire deal must cover all fronts, including Lebanon, or Tehran would suspend message exchanges. Trump later said talks with Iran were continuing at a rapid pace. Administration officials described a memorandum of understanding undergoing final revisions that would require Iran to close its nuclear program and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio is scheduled to testify Tuesday before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and again before a House panel on the State Department’s nearly $36 billion budget request. Lawmakers from both parties have expressed frustration over war costs and the lack of prior congressional authorization. Some Republicans, including Reps. Thomas Massie, Brian Fitzpatrick, and Tom Barrett, have supported measures to limit presidential war powers.

Israeli forces issued new displacement orders for Beirut’s southern suburbs on Monday and continued artillery fire near Nabatieh and the villages of Choukine and Kfar Tibnit. No strikes on Beirut itself were reported by Tuesday morning. Lebanese parliamentary speaker Nabih Berri stated he could guarantee Hezbollah’s immediate adherence to a full ceasefire, while Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah called for withdrawal of Israeli troops from Lebanese territory as the next step.

The sequence of events follows an earlier April ceasefire that collapsed after renewed exchanges. More than 3,412 people have been killed and over one million displaced in Lebanon since March, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health. Israel maintains that its operations target Hezbollah infrastructure after repeated violations.