Israel is in advanced negotiations for an agreement to end the war in southern Lebanon and northern Israel, Yediot Aharonot reported, quoting senior officials.
According to the report, US special envoy Amos Hochstein is behind the negotiations, and may travel between Israel and Lebanon even before the presidential elections next week.
The report also said that an agreement is expected to include the understanding that the IDF will re-establish itself in the border area, exit some of the areas in southern Lebanon where its operations have been completed, and potentially leave forces within Lebanon for a period of time.
The officials stressed that a ceasefire in Lebanon will take place only after the final agreement has been signed, and not a moment earlier. It is estimated that Iran has signaled to Hezbollah that it should agree to the process.
It is also estimated that immediately after the fighting in Lebanon ends, there will be a two-month period in which the Lebanese military repositions itself throughout southern Lebanon, and the efficacy of an international body to implement UN Security Council Resolution 1701 will be examined. The Lebanese army will be responsible for preventing Hezbollah from entering the area south of the Litani River.
An international enforcement and supervisory system will also be set up, in a way which allows both sides to report violations. Israel is also demanding that Hezbollah be prevented from rearming and reconstituting itself, and that any international agreement not allow military means to be brought into the country in any way.
Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the Second Lebanon War in 2006, stipulates that Hezbollah must not be allowed to operate in southern Lebanon and the entire area of southern Lebanon must be free of any armed personnel and weapons other than those of the Government of Lebanon.
The UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), which acts as a buffer between Lebanon and Israel and operates near the border, works to implement Resolution 1701, though its peacekeepers often come under attack from Hezbollah.
Due to UNIFIL's failure to implement and enforce Resolution 1701, Hezbollah was able to plan - and nearly carry out - its "Conquer the Galilee" attack, in which Hezbollah terrorists would infiltrate the Galilee region of northern Israel in an October 7-style attack. These plans were foiled by the IDF's ground invasion of Lebanon.