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President Donald Trump stated this Wednesday that the attacks by Israel against Hizbulá in Lebanon are a separate skirmish from the conflict with Iran and, therefore, do not form part of the two-week truce agreed upon the night before with Tehran.
The clarification came amid a day of heavy bombing: the Israeli Army attacked more than 100 targets in just ten minutes on Lebanese territory, the largest wave since the start of the conflict on February 28, resulting in at least 89 deaths and over 700 injuries, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Health.
In a telephone interview with PBS, Trump was directly asked if he was aware of the Israeli airstrikes launched without prior notice against Beirut. "Yes, they (Hizbollah) were not included in the agreement," he replied.
The leader explained that the Shiite group itself was the reason for its exclusion from the ceasefire. "Because of Hezbollah. They were not included in the agreement. That will also be resolved. It's not a problem," he stated.
When questioned about whether he supported Israel continuing to attack Lebanon, Trump left no room for doubt: "It's part of the agreement, everyone knows that. It's a separate skirmish."
The office of the Israeli Prime Minister made it clear from the beginning that the ceasefire with Iran does not include Lebanon, a position that Netanyahu's government publicly supported.
Israeli attacks focused on Beirut, the Bekaa Valley, and the southern part of the country. The Israel Defense Forces issued evacuation orders in Al-Abassiya, in the Tyre district, and alerts for citizens in southern Beirut.
Tehran's response was immediate: Iran once again suspended the transit of oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, just hours after the first ships began to cross following Tuesday's ceasefire.
The agency Fars, linked to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, was the first to report the new closure, stating that the measure was a direct response to the Israeli bombings in Lebanon.
Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi went further, describing any ceasefire that does not include Israel as unreasonable, warning that the United States must choose between a truce or war through its ally, reported EFE.
Iran also conditioned its participation in the negotiations on Friday in Islamabad on the extension of the ceasefire to Lebanon, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The Norwegian Refugee Council warned that excluding Lebanon from the ceasefire "threatens to fuel further escalation and undermine stability."
Formal negotiations between the United States and Iran are scheduled for next Friday, April 10, in Islamabad, with Vice President JD Vance and Iranian representative Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf as the main interlocutors, and Pakistan, Egypt, and Turkey acting as mediators, emphasized EFE.
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