Israel wants to start peace talks with Lebanon 'as soon as possible'

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on ​Thursday that he has given an instruction for ‌Israel to begin peace talks with Lebanon that would also include the disarming of Hezbollah.

"In light of Lebanon's repeated requests to ​open direct negotiations with Israel, I instructed ​the cabinet yesterday to start direct negotiations with ⁠Lebanon as soon as possible," Netanyahu said in a ​statement. "The negotiations will focus on disarming Hezbollah and establishing ​peaceful relations between Israel and Lebanon."

There was no immediate response from the Lebanese government to Netanyahu's remarks.

An hour before Netanyahu’s statement, ​Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said that “the only solution to ​the situation in Lebanon is to achieve a ceasefire between Israel ‌and ⁠Lebanon, followed by direct negotiations between them.”

He said he was working on a diplomatic track on this matter that was starting to be seen “positively” by international actors.

Israel ​launched a ​renewed offensive against ⁠Hezbollah after the Iran-backed militia began firing at Israel on March 2. Israeli ​strikes have killed around 1,700 people and ​uprooted more ⁠than a million people, according to Lebanese authorities.

At least 400 Hezbollah fighters have been killed, according to sources ⁠familiar ​with the group, which has fired ​hundreds of rockets and drones at Israel.