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3. Israel Backs U.S.-Iran Temporary Ceasefire, Says 'Does Not Include Lebanon'

Israel said Wednesday that a US-Iran ceasefire deal "does not include Lebanon", which was drawn into the war after Iran-backed group Hezbollah launched attacks on Israel.

"The two-weeks ceasefire does not include Lebanon," the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement.

The statement contradicted an earlier announcement by Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who has acted as a mediator in the conflict, that said the ceasefire covers "everywhere including Lebanon"

Lebanon was drawn into the war after Iran-backed group Hezbollah launched rocket fire on Israel. That attack sparked an Israeli invasion and air raids across Lebanon that have killed more than 1,500 people, according to authorities.

Israeli officials expressed support for US President Donald Trump's decision to suspend his bombing of Iran, but maintained the 11th-hour ceasefire did not include Lebanon.

Washington and Tehran agreed to a two-week ceasefire Tuesday, barely an hour before Trump's deadline to obliterate Iran was set to expire.

Tehran said it would guarantee safe passage for maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz for two weeks, announcing that the pause would be used for talks with the United States on ending the war. Negotiations were set to start Friday in Pakistan.

"Israel supports President Trump's decision to suspend strikes against Iran for two weeks subject to Iran immediately opening the straits and stopping all attacks on the US, Israel and countries in the region," the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement.

Israel added that it "supports the US effort to ensure that Iran no longer poses a nuclear, missile and terror threat".

Israel had encouraged Trump to join the war against Iran, its arch-nemesis, and in the first strikes in February killed the long-serving supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

With AFP