We're going to make it—the tenth conflict resolved
Trump secured agreement from Lebanese President Aoun and Israeli PM Netanyahu for a formal 10-day ceasefire starting immediately, marking his claimed tenth conflict resolution. Hezbollah separately proposed a one-week truce, while Israel maintains military pressure and designates southern Lebanon as a 'kill zone,' complicating peace prospects.
- 10-day ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel begins April 16 at 5 PM local time
- Hezbollah separately proposed a one-week truce, coordinated with Tehran
- Israeli airstrikes destroyed the Qasmiyeh Bridge in southern Lebanon, killing 1 and wounding 3
- Israel designated 30 kilometers of southern Lebanon a 'kill zone' for Hezbollah
- Iran-US ceasefire deadline is April 21, same as Trump's Lebanon-Israel agreement deadline
Trump announced a 10-day ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel after phone calls with both leaders. The truce begins at 5 PM local time, though Hezbollah separately proposed a one-week ceasefire and Israel continues military operations.
Donald Trump announced a ten-day ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel on Thursday, April 16, after separate phone conversations with both leaders. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun thanked Trump for his efforts to secure what he called a path toward "lasting peace and stability" in the region. Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, had also agreed to the terms. The formal truce was set to begin at five in the afternoon local time—seven in the evening in Brasília.
Trump instructed Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Joint Chiefs Chairman Dan Caine to work with both governments toward a durable settlement. The president framed the agreement as part of a larger pattern, claiming he had now resolved nine conflicts globally and calling this the tenth. "We're going to make it," he said.
The announcement came after a week of diplomatic maneuvering. Aoun had initially rejected a direct call with Netanyahu, according to a Lebanese official involved in the talks. Trump had promised such a conversation for Thursday, but the actual sequence—separate calls followed by a joint agreement—suggested a more cautious approach. Israel and Lebanon had opened direct negotiations for the first time since 1993, though pointedly excluding Hezbollah from the table. The first round of talks, mediated by the United States, had taken place in Washington on Tuesday.
Hezbollah, the Lebanese militant group at war with Israel, complicated matters by proposing its own one-week ceasefire on Wednesday. The proposal, announced through the television station Al-Mayadeen, was meant to begin at the start of Thursday. Netanyahu's government reviewed it but made no formal response. Behind the scenes, Tehran appeared to be orchestrating the move, seeking to extend its own ceasefire negotiations with the United States—a conflict that had erupted on February 28 when American forces joined Israel in military operations against Iran. Pakistan's military chief, Asim Munir, visited Tehran to help craft a new proposal for American negotiators, with a deadline looming on April 21.
Netanyahu's stated objective remained the "dismantling of Hezbollah," with sustainable peace achieved "through force" as a secondary goal. Hezbollah, for its part, had repeatedly opposed any talks between the Lebanese government and Israel. The group saw the ceasefire negotiations as a threat to its position in Lebanon.
On the ground, the military situation remained volatile. The Israeli military destroyed the Qasmiyeh Bridge, which crossed the Litani River in southern Lebanon, isolating the southern region from the rest of the country. One person was killed and three others wounded, including a soldier stationed at the bridge. Israel had also declared roughly thirty kilometers of southern Lebanese territory—from the border down to the Litani—a "kill zone" for Hezbollah operations. Israeli forces occupied parts of southern Lebanon and showed no signs of withdrawing, arguing that Hezbollah remained the fundamental obstacle to regional peace.
The ten-day ceasefire window was narrow and crowded with competing timelines. Iran's negotiations with the United States were set to conclude on April 21, the same day Trump's deadline for a Lebanon-Israel agreement would expire. Whether the ceasefire would hold, whether it could be extended, and whether Hezbollah would accept any settlement that excluded it remained open questions as the truce began.
Citas Notables
The main objective is to guarantee the dismantling of Hezbollah, and secondly, a sustainable peace achieved through force.— Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu
It was an honor for me to resolve nine wars around the world, and this will be the tenth.— President Trump
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
Why did Trump make separate calls instead of getting them on the line together from the start?
Aoun had refused a direct call with Netanyahu. That's a significant detail—it shows the depth of mistrust. Trump worked around it by calling each leader individually and announcing they'd agreed, which is a diplomatic workaround but not the same as them actually talking to each other.
And Hezbollah's one-week proposal—was that a genuine alternative or a spoiler move?
Probably both. Tehran was clearly behind it, and the timing suggests they wanted to buy negotiating room on their own ceasefire with the Americans. But it also signals that Hezbollah won't accept any deal made without them at the table.
Netanyahu says the goal is dismantling Hezbollah. How does a ten-day ceasefire get you there?
It doesn't, not directly. A ceasefire is a pause. Netanyahu's real leverage is the military occupation and the designation of southern Lebanon as a kill zone. The ceasefire might be a way to consolidate that position while negotiations continue.
So the bridge destruction—that happened during the ceasefire announcement?
No, it happened the day before, on Wednesday. It's part of the pattern of Israeli operations that continued right up to the moment the truce was supposed to begin. One person dead, a soldier wounded. That's the texture of what was happening while diplomats were talking.
What's the April 21 deadline really about?
Iran's ceasefire with the Americans expires then. If that collapses, the whole regional picture shifts. The Lebanese ceasefire is nested inside a larger negotiation. Everything has the same deadline.