Shafaq News/ Lebanese Foreign Minister Abdallah Bouhabib stated that Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah had agreed to a 21-day ceasefire just days before his assassination in an Israeli airstrike on Beirut’s southern suburbs.
About a week earlier, a joint statement from the United States, France, and other Western and Arab powers called, at the UN General Assembly, for a 21-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah to "give diplomacy a chance to succeed and prevent further cross-border escalation."
However, a day after the proposal, Nasrallah was killed in a heavy Israeli airstrike on a Hezbollah headquarters.
In an interview with journalist Christiane Amanpour aired Wednesday on CNN, Bouhabib said, “He agreed (Nasrallah). He did,” adding, "We reached a full agreement. Lebanon agreed to the ceasefire in consultation with Hezbollah. Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri consulted with Hezbollah, and we informed the Americans and French. They told us Netanyahu also agreed to the statement issued by Presidents Biden and Macron."
The Lebanese Foreign Minister further mentioned, “White House Senior Advisor Amos Hochstein was scheduled to travel to Lebanon to negotiate the ceasefire.” He affirmed, "We have been told Netanyahu agreed to this, so we also got Hezbollah's approval, and you know what happened after that."
In response to reports of the US' diminishing influence in the region, Bouhabib said, “Washington has always been important.” He explained, “I don’t think we have an alternative. We need US assistance. Whether we get it or not, we’re not sure yet, but the US is vital to the ceasefire.'"
American media reports indicate that President Biden grew frustrated with Netanyahu’s disregard for the proposal to halt fighting for three weeks.