From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, March 12, 2025
Lebanese source says normalization with Israel not on table after official in Jerusalem claimed otherwise
Lazar Berman is The Times of Israel's diplomatic reporter
After an Israeli official tells The Times of Israel that the country is aiming toward normalization with Lebanon in upcoming talks, a Lebanese source tells the pro-Iran Al-Mayadeen channel that ties with Israel are not on the table.
The three working groups, says the source, “are not separate from Resolution 1701, and will not engage in direct negotiations between Lebanon and Israel.”
UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the previous round of conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006, calls for southern Lebanon to be free of any troops or weapons other than those of the Lebanese state.
“Everything being said about these working groups being a prelude to normalization is completely false,” says the Lebanese source.
The Times of Israel Community.