Beirut: Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati met, in Beirut, with the United States’ special envoy for the Middle East, Amos Hochstein, to discuss the US-led efforts for ceasefire and implementation of the United National Security Council resolution 1,701. During the meeting, Mikati reiterated that the Lebanese government’s priority is to halt the aggression on Lebanon and preserve Lebanese sovereignty over its entire territory, stressing that any means that achieve this objective are a priority.

According to Qatar News Agency, Mikati underlined the importance of the prompt return of displaced people to their villages and towns, in addition to stopping the Israeli genocidal war and the futile devastation of the Lebanese towns. He emphasized the importance of enforcing the crystal-clear international resolutions and reinforcing the Lebanese army’s authority in the south.

Meanwhile, Speaker of the Lebanese Parliament Nabih Berri also met with Hochstein. The US special envoy for the Middle East under
scored his commitment to working side by side with Lebanon to end the war, highlighting that there is a chance to reach a ceasefire deal in Lebanon, and gaps are being bridged in this deal.

For more than a year, Lebanon has been under an Israeli onslaught, whose intensity surged since the end of last September, leading to thousands of casualties.