Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated on Tuesday that a tentative agreement to end the war with the United States requires Israel to withdraw from Lebanon, a condition already rejected by Israel and potentially fatal to the deal. The agreement, brokered mainly by Pakistan and set for a ceremonial signing in Geneva on Friday, remains unpublished and has been subject to conflicting interpretations.
While Israel is not a formal party to the accord, it joined the U.S. in strikes on Iran on Feb.
28 and has since fought Hezbollah in Lebanon, seizing large areas. Araghchi insisted that without Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon, the war is not truly over.
A U.S. official, speaking anonymously, said the deal does not call for an Israeli withdrawal, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stated Israel will remain in Lebanon as long as necessary.
The unresolved issue of Israeli occupation, along with Iran's nuclear program, casts doubt on the long-term prospects of the ceasefire. The agreement is meant to open the Strait of Hormuz, lift blockades, and potentially release frozen Iranian funds, but President Donald Trump has ruled out U.S.
investment in Iran. Regional officials said the deal includes a 60-day clock for talks on Iran's enriched uranium stockpile, but hard-liners oppose giving it up.
World leaders at the G7 summit in France are working to ease economic fallout from the blockade, while Trump criticized Israel's strategy in Lebanon as prolonging the conflict.