Lebanon-Israel ceasefire extended by three weeks after Oval Office meeting

Lebanon and Israel have extended their ceasefire for three weeks after a high-level meeting at the White House, US President Donald Trump said on Thursday.

Trump hosted Israel's ambassador to Washington Yechiel Leiter, and Lebanese ambassador to the US Nada Moawad, in the Oval Office for a second round of US-facilitated talks, a day after Israeli strikes killed at least five people, including a journalist.

"The Meeting went very well! The United States is going to work with Lebanon in order to help it protect itself from Hezbollah," Trump wrote on Truth Social. Hezbollah was not present at the talks. It says it has "the right to resist" occupying forces.

Trump added that he looked forward to hosting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun in the near future.

Trump also spoke to reporters in the Oval Office alongside the participants in the meeting, saying he hoped the leaders would meet during the three-week cessation of hostilities. He said there was "a great chance" the two countries would reach a peace agreement this year.

Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, and US Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa also attended the meeting.

The ceasefire, reached after talks between the two nations' ambassadors to Washington last week, was set to expire on Sunday. It has yielded a significant reduction in violence, but attacks have continued in southern Lebanon, where Israeli troops have seized a self-declared buffer zone.

A Lebanese official earlier said Beirut would push for an Israeli withdrawal, the return of Lebanese detained in Israel, and a delineation of the land border in the next phase of negotiations.

Israel has sought to make common cause with Lebanon's government over Hezbollah, which Beirut has been seeking to disarm peacefully for the past year.

Asked how the US would help Lebanon to fight Hezbollah, Trump did not provide details but said the US had "a great relationship with Lebanon." Trump said Israel had to be able to defend itself against attacks from Hezbollah.

Trump also called for Lebanon to abolish laws against engagement with Israel. "It's a crime to talk with Israel?" he responded when asked about the statutes known as anti-normalisation laws, which he did not appear to be aware of. "Well, I'm pretty sure that that will be ended very quickly. I'll make sure of that," Trump said.

Hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel reignited on March 2, when the group opened fire in support of Iran in the regional war.

The ceasefire in Lebanon emerged separately from Washington’s efforts to resolve its conflict with Tehran, though Iran had called for Lebanon to be included in any broader truce.

Nearly 2,500 people have been killed in Lebanon since Israel went on the offensive following Hezbollah's March 2 attack, according to Lebanese authorities.

Israel is occupying a belt of the south that extends 5 to 10 km  into Lebanon, saying it aims to shield northern Israel from attacks by Hezbollah, which has fired hundreds of rockets during the war.

Israel's military reiterated a warning to residents of south Lebanon not to cross into the area.