International newspapers focused their attention on the consequences of the ceasefire agreement between Hezbollah and Israel, its impact on the course of the war in the Gaza Strip, and the possibility of concluding a prisoner exchange deal with the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas).
The Israeli newspaper Maariv said that members of the Israeli government are trying to use the Lebanon agreement to resume negotiations with Hamas, with the aim of reaching “a short-term agreement that allows for the release of a limited number of prisoners, in the hope that this will give momentum to reaching a larger deal.”
The newspaper quoted analysts as saying that there are large gaps between Israel and Hamas, and that the government coalition in Israel depends on the support of members of the Knesset who called for complete victory in Gaza, and they are unlikely to accept a ceasefire with Hamas.
In turn, the American Wall Street Journal said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may choose to wait until the end of US President Joe Biden’s term, in the hope that the new administration led by Donald Trump will give him greater flexibility to continue the war against Hamas.
The newspaper believes that if Biden is able to reach an agreement between Israel and Hamas in the coming weeks, Trump may claim that he is the reason for achieving this.
In a related context, the American newspaper Politico quoted an informed Israeli official as saying that Trump expected a ceasefire to occur in Lebanon even before his inauguration, and he conveyed this during his recent meeting with Israeli Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer.
The newspaper wondered whether the truce could hold, and quoted Lebanese officials as saying that “Israel’s right to respond to any violations is not part of the official agreement.”
For its part, the British Financial Times reported that residents of the northern settlements in Israel fear that the ceasefire will not be able to protect them in the towns near the border with Lebanon.
The newspaper said that tens of thousands of Israelis face the dilemma of whether they should risk returning to their homes or not.
She added that the residents of the north, after October 7, 2023, fear that Hezbollah will one day carry out cross-border raids, while some of them feel angry at the conditions agreed to by Israel.
On the other hand, the French newspaper Le Monde reported that residents of the Lebanese villages in the border area destroyed by the Israeli army are determined to rebuild their homes, as they have already done after previous wars with Israel.
The newspaper added, “The attachment to the land is stronger than the destruction in southern Lebanon.”
Source : American press + Israeli press + British press + French press
