President Isaac Herzog tells foreign diplomats that he dreams of the day when Israelis can freely visit Beirut after making peace with its northern neighbor.
“Israel is eager to work with all of you to help shape a Middle East in which all of our sons and daughters can inherit opportunity instead of fear,” Herzog tells the gathering, which includes the envoys from the UAE and Bahrain. “That they inherit the promises of tomorrow, and not the conflicts of yesterday.”
Herzog says he recently told “Israeli schoolchildren that my dream is to get into a car and drive straight to Beirut, to visit that beautiful city, to befriend the good people of Lebanon, those who share a prayer with us for a better future.”
He says he salutes “the teams who will hopefully gather tomorrow in Washington, DC, and wish them great success in pursuing peace between Israel and Lebanon. But in order to reach that point, Israel must ensure the safety of its borders.”
Israel is set to hold a second round of historic direct talks with Lebanon in DC tomorrow, this time also attended by Israeli Ambassador to the US Mike Huckabee.
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From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, April 22, 2026
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