Lebanon and Israel resumed talks in Rome Tuesday, with Beirut seeking progress on an Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon under a U.S.-brokered deal, though expectations for a quick breakthrough remained low.
U.S.-led diplomacy has emerged since Hezbollah and Israel returned to war on March 2 amid the wider regional conflict, moving forward despite strong objections from the Iran-backed group, which believes only Iranian pressure on Washington can secure an end to the war and Israeli withdrawal.
Iran demanded an end to the war in Lebanon as part of its interim deal with Washington signed last month, but the agreement has been shaken over the last week by renewed U.S.-Iranian hostilities in the Gulf.
Israel's military is occupying what it describes as a "buffer zone" about 10 kilometers (6 miles) into Lebanon along the entire length of the Israeli border. Israeli officials claim the zone is necessary to protect northern Israeli communities from Hezbollah attacks.
A meeting in Washington on June 26 produced an agreement that called for an end to the Lebanon conflict, the disarmament of armed groups – an apparent reference to Hezbollah – as well as the deployment of Lebanese troops to the south and the progressive withdrawal of Israeli forces.
