Israel's ambassador to the United States, Yechiel Leiter, and his Lebanese counterpart, Nada Hamadeh Moawad, held a historic phone conversation over the weekend, marking a significant diplomatic break as the two countries lack formal relations. The talks were facilitated under the auspices of the US State Department with the participation of the US ambassador to Lebanon.
According to a statement from Leiter, Israel agreed to begin formal peace negotiations with Lebanon this coming Tuesday. However, he emphasized that Israel refuses to discuss a ceasefire with what he called the "Hezbollah terrorist organization," which he claimed remains the main obstacle to peace. In response, Lebanese lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah, affiliated with Hezbollah, stated that the group rejects direct negotiations between Lebanon and Israel.
This diplomatic engagement occurs against a backdrop of intense Israeli military operations in Lebanon, which have reportedly killed over 2,000 people and displaced approximately one million. Israel has conducted near-daily attacks on Lebanese territory since a November 2024 ceasefire, violating the truce hundreds of times. Following the US-Israel war on Iran that began on February 28, 2025, Hezbollah launched a cross-border retaliatory attack on March 2 in response to the assassination of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Yechiel Leiter, a US-born Israeli, has a controversial background that includes involvement with pro-settlement activism in the occupied West Bank. He has held various senior government roles, serving as a senior adviser to former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, chief of staff to current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu when he was finance minister, deputy director-general of Israel's Ministry of Education, and chairman of the Israel Ports Company.
Leiter's early political affiliations have drawn scrutiny: he was reportedly involved with the Jewish Defense League (JDL), a far-right pro-Israel group designated as a "terrorist" organization by US authorities, and later with the Kach party. Analyst Elia Ayoub noted that this implies at least ideological links to massacres such as the 1994 Cave of the Patriarchs killings in Hebron, where 29 Palestinians were killed. Leiter also served in the Israeli army during the 1982 Lebanon War.
On Gaza, Leiter has been a staunch defender of Israel's actions, advocating for the demilitarization of the enclave and disarmament of Hamas. His son died fighting in northern Gaza in November 2023. In September 2025, after Israel bombed Hamas negotiators in Doha, Qatar, Leiter signaled that further strikes in Qatar targeting senior Hamas figures were possible, drawing widespread condemnation.
Leiter supports the Abraham Accords, arguing that the ongoing conflict strengthens prospects for normalization. He expressed optimism about potential accords with Syria and Lebanon. However, analyst Ayoub expressed skepticism about the talks involving Leiter, stating they are "designed to fail." He pointed to Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu's alleged boasting that Lebanon had "begged" to negotiate following bombardment, reflecting a pattern where Israel seeks to pressure neighbors into agreements for domestic political gain rather than genuine peace, as seen in its rejection of the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative.
Source: www.aljazeera.com