Ruptly
"Residents in Tel Aviv expressed scepticism about the prospects of an effective ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, while still voicing hope that it would bring a period of peace after years of conflict, during interviews on Friday. "As far as the ceasefire goes, I imagine it's pretty fragile since we have a lot of players involved. Right? We have Israel, Lebanon, and Hezbollah, and everybody has their own interests here, and it's impossible to know what will motivate somebody to break it, right?” one of the locals said. "On one hand, I think it's fragile, and on the other hand, I think they will think many times before breaking it," another local commented. However, locals pinned their hopes for finally resolving the long-standing conflict on US President Donald Trump, with many residents questioning the leadership of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, "What Trump said is more important than what Bibi said. And I think that if he puts his foot down and announces that some arrangement must be reached, then they will reach some arrangement," said local Tzurit Oron. "Trump made it clear that he simply doesn't want this war, no matter how much he threatens," another added. Some residents suggested that Hezbollah should also be included as a negotiating party for any peace agreement to be sustainable. "If Hezbollah is not part of the peace agreement, then it probably won't bring much good. As we've seen in the past, Lebanon by itself is not capable of reining in Hezbollah and its weapons. So yeah, not really worth much if they're not involved," a local said. The 10-day ceasefire took effect at 12:00 am local time on Friday (Thursday, 9:00 pm GMT) after US-led talks between Lebanese and Israeli officials in Washington, marking the first time the two countries have engaged in direct talks in more than three decades. The Lebanese Presidency stated that Aoun had received a call from Trump, "during which he reiterated his thanks for the efforts being made to reach a ceasefire in Lebanon and secure lasting peace and stability, paving the way for the peace process in the region." Meanwhile, Netanyahu announced in a recorded address that "we have an opportunity to reach a historic peace agreement with Lebanon, and President Trump intends to invite both the President of Lebanon and myself, in an effort to move this agreement forward.""
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