G7’s final Biden-era meeting pushes for lasting Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire

Brokering a ceasefire in Gaza and Lebanon was high on the agenda of a Group of Seven (G7) foreign ministers’ meeting in the Italian city of Fiuggi on Monday (25 November).
Signs emerged of progress on a cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah as foreign ministers from the world’s leading industrialized nations met in Italy, with reports suggesting a US-led proposal could soon be accepted by the warring sides two months after Israel launched its ground invasion of Lebanon. Italy’s foreign minister, Antonio Tajani, who hosted the G7 meeting, expressed cautious optimism, saying that “we are maybe close to a cease fire in Lebanon, let’s touch wood and let’s hope it’s true, and there is no reverse gear at the last moment.” Ministers from Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar and Jordan, as well as the Secretary General of the Arab League, also joined the meeting.
The heightened diplomatic efforts in both the Mideast and Ukraine wars come amid mounting pressure ahead of the new Donald Trump administration taking office in the United States. The draft proposal to end the fighting calls for an initial two-month ceasefire during which Israeli forces would withdraw from Lebanon and Hezbollah would end its armed presence along the southern border south of the Litani River. A ceasefire deal to end fighting between Israel and the Lebanon-based Hezbollah could be reached “within days,” Israel’s ambassador to the US, Mike Herzog, told the media on Monday.