The tense Israel-Lebanon standoff has delayed the prospects of an Iran peace deal

The spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces, Avichay Adraee, warned the residents of the towns and villages in the large areas of southern Lebanon on Friday that the IDF soldiers are not going outside the country during this new suspension, and they should not try to return to their homes.

“With the cease-fire agreement entering the implementation phase, the Israel Defense Forces continue to maintain their positions in southern Lebanon in the face of the ongoing terrorist activities of Hezbollah,” Adraee said on his social media site.

“Out of concern for your safety and the safety of your family members – until further notice – you are asked not to leave south of the Litani River,” he said, referring to the river that forms the dividing line across southern Lebanon.

Lebanese authorities say more than one million people – about a fifth of the country’s population – were expelled by Israel.

Hezbollah, the US-designated and Iranian-aligned terrorist group in Lebanon that has been fighting Israel for years, quietly indicated on Friday that it would respect the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon announced by President Trump the day before.

Hezbollah was not an official party to the ceasefire, which went into effect at 5 p.m. Eastern, agreed between Israeli and Lebanese leaders. But it was Hezbollah – not the Lebanese army – that fired rockets at Israeli towns and cities during the war that was triggered by the US-Israeli joint attack on Iran on February 28.

Israel increased its offensive in Lebanon against Hezbollah targets in line with its US-led strikes on Iran, and launched a global offensive that saw Israeli forces occupy a large part of southern Lebanon. Lebanese officials say the Israeli operation has killed more than 2,000 people, including many women and children, and driven more than 1 million people from their homes.

Hezbollah issued a statement on Friday praising its attacks on Israel during the war, saying that thousands of strikes on Israeli positions and settlements are in retaliation for Israel’s attacks on Lebanese territory. The statement emphasized that Hezbollah fighters will remain ready for any new escalation.

“The hands of these fighters will continue to be stunned, waiting for the enemy’s deception and broken promises,” the group warned.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who has been a key negotiator in the US-Iran talks, including ending the two-week ongoing, welcomed on Friday the suspension of the agreement agreed the previous day by the leaders of Israel and Lebanon, which was announced by President Trump.

“I welcome the announcement of a cease-fire in Lebanon, made with the courage and intelligence efforts led by President Donald Trump, and I express the hope that it will pave the way for sustainable peace,” Sharif said in a social media post.

“Pakistan reaffirms its unwavering support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Lebanon, and will continue to support all efforts aimed at achieving lasting peace in the region,” he said.

Sharif and the Chief of Army Staff of Pakistan, Marshal Asim Munir, worked hard this week, visiting Persian Gulf topics and holding calls with American and Iranian officials, to create a new round of direct talks between Iran and the US.

No date has been set for that second round of talks yet, but a cease-fire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah could help pave the way for direct talks, as Israel’s invasion of Lebanon remains a key factor after the previous round.

A 10-day deal appeared in Lebanon early Friday, promising a temporary halt to fighting between Israel and the Hezbollah terrorist group and possibly removing one major obstacle to a deal between Iran, the United States and Israel to end weeks of devastating war. The ceasefire began at 5pm EDT.

But it was not clear whether Israel and Hezbollah would completely stop fighting each other and whether the militant group would see a deal it had no part in negotiating and that would leave Israeli forces occupying the southern part of Lebanon.

The Lebanese army wrote on social media that there were “many violations of the agreement, and several attacks on Israel were recorded, in addition to the shootings aimed at many areas.” And French President Emmanuel Macron said on Friday he was concerned that the ceasefire “may be undermined by ongoing military operations,” French news agency AFP reported.

Still, gunfire erupted across Beirut as residents fired into the air shortly after midnight to celebrate the start of the deal, and displaced families began moving to southern Lebanon and areas south of Beirut despite officials’ warnings not to attempt to return to their homes until it was clear the ceasefire would hold.

CBS/AP

President Trump said in his Public Truth forum late Thursday night, after the Israel-Lebanon operation began, that “It could be a historic day in Lebanon. Good things are happening!!!”

Mr. Trump announced earlier that Lebanon and Israel had agreed to a 10-day ceasefire, which began at 5pm Eastern on Thursday, or midnight local time in the Mideast.

Earlier on ThursdayMr. Trump said on Truth Social that he hopes Hezbollah “will do well and well during this critical period in time. It will be a HUGE moment for them if they do. No more killing. Finally there must be PEACE!”

President Trump said Thursday night that “the war with Iran is going swimmingly.”

“We had to take a little trip down to Iran, and I didn’t want to do that, but we had to because we’re not going to let them have a nuclear weapon,” the president said during an event in Las Vegas.

The president predicted that the war “must end soon,” a prediction he has made in the past. The US and Iran currently have nine days to end the two-week standoff, buying both sides time to negotiate, and Mr. Trump told reporters on Thursday that “if there is no deal, the fighting starts again.”

But he was optimistic about ongoing indirect talks with Tehran, as Pakistani mediators work to arrange a new round of direct talks between US officials and Iranian officials that Mr.

“We will win soon,” said Mr. Trump in Las Vegas, adding: “Let’s see what happens in the next week or so.”

US Central Command said Thursday it is using more than 10,000 American service members – with at least 12 ships and 100 aircraft – to enforce its ongoing blockade of Iranian ports.

CENTCOM, which oversees US military operations in the Middle East, reiterated in a social media post that US forces are not blocking the Strait of Hormuz itself, but rather “Iranian ports and coasts.”

The US began its blockade on Monday. CENTCOM said Thursday that 14 ships have so far “turned to comply with the blockade” since it went into effect.

Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said at a news conference earlier in the day that the US would “use force” against any ships it disagreed with.