As reports of Israeli attacks continue to pour in, Lebanese Prime Minister (PM) Nawaf Salam has called Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif to thank Pakistan for its diplomatic efforts in the Middle East and requested Islamabad’s support to also bring an immediate end to hostilities across Lebanon.

“The prime minister strongly condemned Israel’s ongoing aggression against Lebanon and expressed condolences over the loss of thousands of precious lives in these hostilities,” the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) stated, hours after which, the Israeli PM said that his government was prepared to hold direct talks with Lebanon.

Earlier, PM Shehbaz noted that Pakistan is pursuing “sincere efforts for regional peace” and pointed to the Islamabad talks between Iran and the United States (US) taking place this weekend as part of these efforts.

The same was followed by a statement from Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, which read, “In light of Lebanon’s repeated requests to open direct negotiations with Israel, I instructed the cabinet yesterday to start direct negotiations with Lebanon as soon as possible.”

He outlined the scope of potential negotiations, noting they would focus on “disarming Hezbollah and establishing peaceful relations between Israel and Lebanon.”

The announcement came a day after Israeli attacks across Lebanon killed more than 300 people. Israel and the US stated Lebanon was not included in the two-week truce aimed at allowing negotiations on ending the five-week US-Israel war on Iran. 

However, Iran and mediator Pakistan stated that Lebanon was included in the ceasefire. Several international leaders also called for Lebanon to be included.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said he was working on a diplomatic track that was starting to be seen “positively” by international actors.

Meanwhile, Lebanon’s cabinet also instructed security forces to restrict weapons in Beirut exclusively to state institutions. 

“The army and security forces are requested to immediately begin reinforcing the full imposition of state authority over Beirut governorate and to monopolise weapons in the hands of legitimate authorities alone,” read a release after the cabinet meeting.