BEIRUT/ROME: Lebanon and Israel resumed talks on Tuesday in the Italian capital, with Beirut hoping for progress toward securing an Israeli withdrawal from south Lebanon under a US-brokered deal, although expectations for swift progress were low. US-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.

The sixth round of U.S.-mediated negotiations comes as Lebanon insists Israel withdraw from two planned pilot zones before further progress, while Israel says no pullout is…

BEIRUT: Lebanese negotiators are set to meet their Israeli counterparts in Rome on Tuesday for a sixth round of direct, US-brokered talks, with the session scheduled to run over…

The last thing Beirut wants is replacing one regional-power influence with another