Rubio proposes gradual de-escalation plan to halt Israel-Lebanon fighting

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has spoken with both Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about the diplomatic negotiations between Israel and Lebanon and has proposed a plan to allow for "gradual de-escalation," a US official told Reuters.

The US has proposed that as a first step, Hezbollah would stop all attacks on Israel and in return Israel would refrain from escalation in Beirut, the official said.

"This would create space for gradual de-escalation and an effective cessation of hostilities," according to the official.

Israel to stop "first"

He added that Aoun tried to advance the proposal and secure an agreement.

However, Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, who claimed to "guarantee" Hezbollah's commitment to a ceasefire, placed the burden on Israel to stop "shooting first."

Netanyahu had said on Sunday that he ordered troops to move further into Lebanon in the battle against Hezbollah, despite a ceasefire announced more than six weeks ago.

In the latest advance, Israeli troops seized the 900-year-old Beaufort Castle and a strategic ridge in southern Lebanon, the military said earlier on Sunday, a day after one of the heaviest days of Hezbollah fire toward northern Israel since the April ceasefire, prompting school closures and restrictions.

The US official said that the US did not expect Israel to absorb ongoing attacks on its civilians from Hezbollah.

Israeli attacks have displaced more than 1.2 million Lebanese since March 2.

Since then, Israeli strikes have pummelled Lebanon's south and east and its capital, Beirut, killing more than 3,200 people, according to Lebanon's health ministry. Israel says 23 of its soldiers and four civilians have been killed over the same period.

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Source: TRT