The US State Department has announced that the talks between Israel and Lebanon, which were due to conclude on 25 June, will be extended by a further day.
According to US officials, the talks will resume on the morning of 26 June. Washington is hosting the meeting and acting as a mediator in the talks.
“Talks between Israel and Lebanon are continuing, and we remain the mediator,” the State Department said in a statement.
The talks are taking place against the backdrop of a fragile ceasefire between Israel and the Iran-linked organisation Hezbollah. This conflict has flared up against the backdrop of the US and Israel’s war with Iran, which is also currently in a state of ceasefire.
The Iranian-backed ‘Hezbollah’ – a militant group and political party controlling a significant part of southern Lebanon – — is designated as a terrorist organisation by the US, whilst the EU has blacklisted only its armed wing, but not its political wing.
Israel continues to carry out strikes on targets linked to Hezbollah in southern Lebanon and in the capital, Beirut, stating that these attacks are a measure of self-defence against rocket fire directed at Israel by the militant group.