Following the announcement of the 21-day Israel-Lebanon ceasefire proposal, the White House declared that they are in continued discussions with Israel, who did not warm up to the idea, and mentioned that they would not have published the joint statement if they had not received a positive response from Israel yesterday.

National Security Communication Advisor John Kirby stated in a press briefing held via teleconference that they are continuing to work towards achieving a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah. Kirby emphasized that Israel was aware and informed about the joint ceasefire call made by 10 countries led by the US and France and the European Union (EU) before yesterday’s statement. Kirby, who said, “Our active discussions with our Israeli counterparts about yesterday’s statement are ongoing,” noted that a full-scale war would not resolve any issues in the region and they wanted the Israel-Hezbollah tension to subside before escalating further and were working towards that goal.

AVOIDING RESPONSES TO NETANYAHU’S STATEMENTS
Kirby avoided giving clear answers to many questions about whether Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s rejection of the ceasefire agreement proposal and declarations of continued attacks on Lebanon were completely contrary to yesterday’s joint statement. Kirby, who said, “All I can say is that these discussions were held with our Israeli friends before the joint statement yesterday, and they continue today,” stated that he would not comment on Netanyahu’s statements. Emphasizing that they would not have published yesterday’s joint statement in this way if they had not received a positive feedback from top Israeli officials yesterday, Kirby said, “If we did not receive a message of support from our high-level Israeli counterparts after yesterday’s discussions, we would not have published it in this manner.”

21-DAY CEASEFIRE CALL
In the joint statement led by the US and France and bringing together the European Union and 8 more countries, a 21-day urgent ceasefire call was made to stop the conflicts between Israel and Lebanon and open the door to diplomacy. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had stated in New York in his remarks on the issue that they would continue to attack Hezbollah in Lebanon “until they reach their goals.”