Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said that part of the 10-point ceasefire agreed with the United States earlier this week includes “Lebanon and the entire Axis of Resistance.”
In a message to X on 9 April, Qalibaf listed three points. “Lebanon and the entire Resistance Axis as allies of Iran are an integral part of the ceasefire,” he noted, adding that this was the first point in the ceasefire proposal with the United States.
The second point that Qalibaf cited was that Pakistani Prime Minister Shebahz Sharif “has publicly and clearly noted the Lebanese issue;there is no room for denial and retreat.”
The last paragraph of the message warns that violating the ceasefire “entails clear and strong responses.”
Disagreements between Washington and Tehran over whether the temporary ceasefire agreed early in the day on 8 April also applies to Lebanon are affecting the deal at a time when Israel has vowed to continue attacking Iran-backed Hezbollah.
“Hezbollah, based in Lebanon, is considered a terrorist organisation by Israel and the US.
The U.S. notes that the ceasefire applies only to fighting with Iran and does not include Israel’s operation against Hezbollah in Lebanon. Iran says the ceasefire should extend to Lebanon.
EU diplomatic chief Kaja Kallas on 9 April also said the US-Iran ceasefire agreement should also apply to Lebanon and the Iranian-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah should disarm.
“Israel’s actions seriously jeopardise the US-Iran ceasefire agreement. The Iranian ceasefire must extend to Lebanon,” Callas wrote in a post on social media X.
US President Donald Trump announced on 8 April that the United States had agreed to a two-week ceasefire with Iran, during which the sides would negotiate a full ceasefire.
However, the temporary truce between the United States and Iran shook less than 24 hours after its announcement as Israel launched large-scale attacks on Iranian allies in Lebanon and Tehran struck oil facilities in several Persian Gulf countries, saying its energy power systems had become power-hungry.
The first round of talks between the US and Iran on an agreement to end the war is expected to take place on Friday, 10 April in Islamabad – the first face-to-face talks since the war began.