00:00The 10-day ceasefire agreed between Lebanon and Israel took effect in the central Lebanese
00:05province of Khet.
00:06But even as the clock struck the appointed hour, local media reported a round of gunfire,
00:12an uneasy beginning to what both sides hope will be a period of calm.
00:17Lebanese state media reported continued Israeli defense forces shelling of southern Lebanon.
00:22Those reports could not be immediately verified.
00:25But the Lebanese army, early on April 17, reported several Israeli violations of the ceasefire.
00:32The army advised citizens to delay their return to their homes in the south, an area that has
00:38been the focus of Israel's offensive into Lebanon.
00:41The ceasefire was announced on April 16 by President Donald Trump and confirmed by the
00:47leaders of both Israel and Lebanon.
00:49The U.S. president said he expected to host the two leaders within a week or two.
00:54In a video statement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed he had agreed
01:00to the 10-day ceasefire.
01:02He described it as a chance to forge a historic deal with Lebanon after decades of conflict.
01:08President Trump, in a post on social media after the deal was signed, addressed Hezbollah
01:13directly.
01:14I hope Hezbollah does well in this critical time, Trump wrote.
01:18This critical time will be a great time for them.
01:21But if they do, there will be no more killing.
01:24Finally, there must be peace.
01:26The message was carefully worded neither an endorsement nor a condemnation, but a warning
01:32wrapped in hope.
01:33Lebanon accepted the deal before entering further negotiations.
01:37Crucially, Lebanon has agreed to disarm Hezbollah fighters, a demand that has been a cornerstone
01:43of Israeli and American policy for decades.
01:46As news of the ceasefire spread, ASB TV footage showed people returning to their homes in the
01:52southern city of Beirut.
01:53Some waved the yellow flag of the Iranian-backed Hezbollah movement.
01:57Others held photos of the group's leader, who was killed by Israeli forces in 2024.
02:03The images were powerful.
02:05A population emerging from weeks of conflict, returning to streets that had been emptied by
02:11war.
02:12But Hezbollah itself issued a warning.
02:14The group advised people to refrain from returning to the area until it was clear that the ceasefire
02:20would hold.
02:21Hezbollah also warned people not to fire weapons in celebration.
02:25In a statement, the group said that bullets should be aimed at the enemy not fired into
02:30the air to celebrate.
02:31The message was clear.
02:33The war is not over.
02:35The enemy is still there.
02:36And vigilance must be maintained.
02:38Israel launched its strikes on Hezbollah on May 2nd of the previous year, the day after
02:44the U.S.-Iraq war on Iran began.
02:47Hezbollah forces opened fire in support of Tehran, drawing Israel into a two-front conflict.
02:53The two-week ceasefire that had been implemented for the Iran-Iraq war had not yet been extended
02:59to Lebanon.
03:00Israel's military deployed its forces throughout southern Lebanon after the strikes and warned
03:05Lebanese people not to move south of the Letani River, an area approximately 20 to 30
03:11kilometres north of the Israeli border.
03:13UN Secretary-General Ant-Enayogutas welcomed the announcement of the ceasefire and called
03:19on all parties to fully respect it.
03:21The Secretary-General spokesman Stephen Dujaric issued a formal statement.
03:26The Secretary-General welcomes the announcement of a 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon,
03:32Dujaric said.
03:33He commends the United States' role in facilitating this move.
03:37The United States also indicated that a deal with Iran could be reached soon.
03:41Following a meeting scheduled for the coming weekend, President Trump, speaking to reporters
03:47outside the White House on April 16th, expressed optimism about the parallel negotiations with
03:53Iran.
03:54I think we are close to reaching a deal with Iran, Trump said.
03:58He expressed confidence that the 10-day ceasefire, which expires on April 22nd, would be extended.
04:04And if no agreement is reached, he suggested, the ceasefire would still be extended.
04:10Although he did not specify a timeframe, Trump reiterated his commitment to ending the broader
04:16conflict.
04:17He announced that he hoped to welcome Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese
04:22Prime Minister Najib McCarty together at the White House.
04:26Netanyahu, in his video message, confirmed his agreement to the 10-day ceasefire.
04:32He added that Israeli troops would remain in a fortified security zone to protect Israeli
04:37cities from attack.
04:39He stressed that Israel has two main demands.
04:42First, the complete disarmament of Hezbollah.
04:45Second, a peace agreement based on the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon.
04:50The Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, Mohamed Bagagalibov, received news of the ceasefire with
04:56careful attention.
04:57He said Iran would continue to monitor the situation in Lebanon and work to establish a lasting ceasefire.
05:04He considered the Lebanese ceasefire very important for Iran.
05:08For us, Koulibov said, the Lebanese ceasefire is equally important in Lebanon and in Iran.
05:15Koulibov led the Iranian delegation negotiating with the United States in talks held in Islamabad
05:21last week.
05:22Yesterday, he met with the head of the Lebanese army, General Joseph Aoun, who traveled to Iran
05:28as a mediator.
05:29But not everyone in Lebanon supports the deal.
05:31Nabi Beri, the Speaker of the Lebanese Parliament, said he considered any ties with Israel to be
05:38against the interests of the Lebanese people.
05:40Beri is a Hezbollah ally and is very close to the Iranian government.
05:45His opposition to normalizing relations with Israel is longstanding and deeply held.
05:51His statement suggests that even if the ceasefire holds, a broader peace agreement will face significant
05:57political obstacles within Lebanon.
05:59Iran has made Lebanon a condition for any deal with the United States.
06:04According to the Lebanese government, these conditions are being negotiated directly on Pakistani soil.
06:11The negotiations are complex.
06:13Iran wants guarantees that its interests in Lebanon primarily through Hezbollah will be protected.
06:19The United States wants Hezbollah disarmed.
06:22These two positions are fundamentally incompatible.
06:25The Lebanese Ministry of Health has released figures on the human cost of the conflict.
06:30The ministry's numbers do not distinguish between militants and civilians.
06:35According to the ministry, 2,196 people have been killed by Israeli defense forces in Lebanon
06:42since the fighting began.
06:44Among the dead are 26 women and 170 children.
06:48On the Israeli side, authorities say Hezbollah attacks have killed to civilians in Israel.
06:55Additionally, 13 Israeli soldiers have been killed in fighting with Hezbollah.
07:00The Israeli defense forces have destroyed the last bridge linking southern Lebanon to the rest of the country.
07:06This action has further isolated the southern region home to three major cities and raised fears among many Lebanese that
07:14this could lead to a long-term Israeli occupation of the area.
07:17IDF officials have previously stated that they intend to maintain security control over the territory even after the current war
07:25ends.
07:26New research, citing BBC News, suggests that towns and villages across southern Lebanon are being razed by IDF shelling.
07:34Approximately 3,700 homes have been completely destroyed.
07:39International reaction to the ceasefire has been strong.
07:42Canada's foreign minister called the truce an important step towards reducing tensions.
07:48He called on all parties to respect and fully implement the ceasefire to prevent further loss of life.
07:54Canada also reaffirmed its commitment to the disarmament of armed groups in Lebanon
07:58and to the full implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 which calls for a zone free of armed personnel
08:07and weapons between the Letani River and the Israeli border.
08:10The 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon is a fragile peace.
08:15It began with gunfire.
08:16It continues under the shadow of ongoing Israeli military operations.
08:21It is threatened by Hezbollah's refusal to disarm, by Iran's influence and by the deep political divisions within Lebanon itself.
08:29But it is also a chance.
08:32A chance to end decades of conflict.
08:34A chance to bring stability to Israel's northern border.
08:37A chance to prevent further loss of innocent life.
08:41President Trump has expressed hope that the ceasefire will be extended and that a broader peace agreement can be reached.
08:47The next 10 days will determine whether that hope becomes reality or whether the guns will begin firing again.
08:54The world is watching and the people of Lebanon and Israel are waiting.
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