France Offers to Broker Lebanon-Israel Talks: What Do We Know? | Israel attacks Lebanon News

Paris is ready to broker a deal between Lebanon and Israel, French President Emmanuel Macron said, adding that Lebanese leaders are willing to engage in direct talks in a major shift in the country’s attitude toward Israel.

Macron’s remarks came Saturday after Israel continued its offensive in Lebanon, killing more than 800 people and displacing nearly 800,000. Israel has issued mandatory evacuation orders for all residents south of the Litani River in southern Lebanon. Reports indicate that Israeli forces are preparing for a major ground offensive there.

Israel launched attacks on Lebanon after the Hezbollah group fired rockets in response to the assassination of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on March 1, a day after the United States and Israel launched a war. Hezbollah has not responded to daily attacks by Israel since the November 2024 ceasefire.

Let’s unpack what France said and what it meant.

What is Macron’s proposal?

Macron said he spoke with Lebanese President Michel Aoun, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and Speaker Nabih Berri.

“The Lebanese government has indicated its willingness to engage in direct negotiations with Israel,” he said in a message posted on X in Hebrew, Arabic and French. All sections of the country should be represented, he said, urging Israel to seize the opportunity and start talks for a ceasefire, “to give up its large-scale aggression and stop its massive airstrikes”. He called on Hezbollah to stop “its escalating conflict”.

“France is ready to facilitate these discussions by hosting them in Paris,” Macron said. “Everything must be done to prevent Lebanon (from) descending into chaos.”

On Saturday evening, the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs denied any such plan, saying France was open to facilitating and supporting Lebanon to hold direct talks with Israel.

However, a source familiar with French efforts told Al Jazeera that the plan exists, but that France hopes to fold it into a broader diplomatic push to bring the US on board and end the devastating conflict.

Axios cited three sources as saying French officials have drafted a proposal that would require the Lebanese government to recognize Israel in exchange for an end to the war.

Israel and Lebanon have technically been at war since 1948, when thousands of Palestinians took refuge in Lebanon. Since then they have signed cease-fires and cease-fire agreements, but a final binding peace deal has eluded them amid Israel’s expansionism.

Hezbollah was formed in response to Israel’s 1982 invasion of Lebanon. It evolved into one of the country’s most powerful political players, drawing its support largely among the Shia population.

According to an Axios report, the Lebanese government has accepted the plan as a basis for peace talks. The proposal calls for deploying Lebanese troops south of the Litani River, but withdrawing from areas captured by Israel since the start of the current war.

Two sources told the Israeli newspaper Haaretz that talks could already begin “in the coming days” in Cyprus or Paris.

However, Al Jazeera could not independently confirm the veracity of the media reports.

What is the position of Israel and Hezbollah in the negotiations?

The Lebanese authorities’ offer of direct talks with Israel is a major concession in a country where relations with longtime foe Israel have been divisive.

As the government has hardened its stance against Hezbollah, it has accused the group of posing a threat to the country’s security. On March 2, the Lebanese Prime Minister banned Hezbollah’s military activities and restricted its role to the public sphere.

Berri, the parliament speaker who represents the Shia community and is an ally of Hezbollah, welcomed the idea of ​​direct talks but said talks would be held only after Israel stops its attacks on Lebanese territory and displaced people can return to their homes – a position in line with the Lebanese group. Israel, on the other hand, has repeatedly said it will not hold its fire until Hezbollah disarms.

A Hezbollah source told Al Jazeera that the group has so far not accepted the offer of talks.

Despite the diplomatic initiatives, the reality on the battlefield suggests that neither Hezbollah nor Israel is ready to sit down at the negotiating table, said Al Jazeera’s Zeena Khodr. Hezbollah says Israel has imposed air superiority and continues to bomb targets across the country, pushing back Israel’s advance in the south of the country.

“The battlefield is still taking shape and it is clear that neither side is in a position to impose its terms at the moment,” Khodr reported from Beirut.

What about the previous ceasefire agreement?

Hezbollah and Israel agreed to a U.S.-backed ceasefire in November 2024 after more than a year of cross-border fighting in which Israel killed the group’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, in a two-month all-out war. The two sides committed to withdrawing their forces south of Litani to stop the fighting and make way for the redeployment of the Lebanese Army in the area.

However, in practice, the agreement reduced the intensity of the conflict but did not stop it completely. Israel maintains a presence in at least five locations and continues military strikes on a daily basis.

Hezbollah has refused to lay down its arms, one of the terms of the 2024 deal. It says it will do so only after Israel fully withdraws from Lebanese territory and ceases its airstrikes.

What is the latest on the ground?

Diplomatic efforts continue to pound Israel in Lebanon, with campaigners pointing to the destruction of residential areas, including health centers. Hezbollah has fired dozens of rockets at Israel.

Israel maintains a constant bombardment targeting the capital Beirut and other locations throughout the country. The airstrikes have driven more than 830,000 people from their homes – about 14 percent of the country’s population.

Many are struggling to find shelter as aid agencies warn of a humanitarian catastrophe. Israel has called for the forced evacuation of southern suburbs of Beirut and parts of the eastern Bekaa Valley.

The massive uprooting comes as senior Israeli leaders, including Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, said last week that Beirut and its southern suburbs would become like the leveled city of Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip.