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Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted the southern Lebanese village of Jarjouaa on May 13, 2026. [AFP]
Lebanon's Simon Karam and Israel's Yechiel Leiter, both political veterans with entrenched views, will come face to face in Washington for talks Thursday after decades in a state of war.
Lebanon and Israel have no formal ties, but US President Donald Trump is hoping for a historic breakthrough even as Israeli forces remain deployed in south Lebanon to fight Iran-backed Hezbollah.
While Lebanon is seeking to consolidate a ceasefire in the latest war and to obtain the withdrawal of Israeli troops, Israel wants to ensure Hezbollah is disarmed.
