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☆ U.S. envoy in Beirut for talks after Lebanon and Hezbollah approve truce draft
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-19 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +1 min

U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein landed in Beirut on Tuesday for talks with officials on a truce between armed group Hezbollah and Israel, Lebanon’s state news agency said, hours after a proposal drafted by Washington won a nod from the Iran-backed group. The visit indicates progress in U.S.-led diplomacy aimed at ending a conflict which spiralled into all-out war in late September, when Israel launched a major offensive against Iran-backed Hezbollah. Hezbollah endorsed its long-time ally Berri to negotiate over a cease-fire, but both it and Israel have escalated the fight as the political efforts carried on. A diplomat familiar with the talks cautioned that details still needed to be ironed out and these could still hold up a final agreement. Khalil said Israel was trying to negotiate “under fire”, a reference to an escalation of its bombardment of Beirut and the Hezbollah-controlled southern suburbs.

Persons: Amos Hochstein, Ali Hassan Khalil, Nabih Berri, Berri, Khalil, Israel, ” Organizations: Washington, Lebanese, Hezbollah, Reuters, . Security Locations: Beirut, Israel, Iran, Lebanon

• US envoy Amos Hochstein is expected in Beirut today, according to two Lebanese official sources. His trip is seen as a sign of progress in ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hezbollah, but does not mean a deal is imminent. • In northern Gaza, an Israeli airstrike has killed over a dozen members of a single family. The 17 killed were family members of a cardiologist who was working at a hospital when the strike hit. Mike Huckabee, Trump’s pick for US ambassador to Israel, has voiced support for Israeli occupation in the Palestinian territory.

Persons: Amos Hochstein, •, Biden, Donald Trump, Mike Huckabee, Trump’s Organizations: West Bank, President Locations: Beirut, Israel, Israeli, •, Gaza, Palestinian

CNN —United States envoy Amos Hochstein is due to visit Beirut “imminently” after Lebanon responded “positively” to a US-backed proposal to stop the Israel-Hezbollah war, Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati said on Monday. US ambassador to Lebanon Lisa Johnson relayed the proposal to the Lebanese government via Nabih Berri, the parliament speaker, on Thursday night, a Lebanese official told CNN earlier. According to the official, Hezbollah reviewed the proposal and submitted their response to Lebanese authorities on Sunday evening. The Israeli source added that Hochstein has not yet confirmed when he will arrive in the region. Another Lebanese source familiar with the ceasefire talks told CNN earlier that President-elect Trump has endorsed Hochstein’s ceasefire negotiations track, increasing the chances of its success.

Persons: Amos Hochstein, imminently, “, Najib Mikati, Al Araby, Mikati, Lebanon Lisa Johnson, Ed Ram, Netanyahu, Hochstein, Bezalel Smotrich, ”, Nabih Berri, Mohamed Azakir, Reuters Berri, Amal, Hassan Nasrallah, Donald Trump’s, Trump, Israel Organizations: CNN, United, Lebanese, UN, Getty, Reuters, Saudi, Al, Hezbollah, US Locations: Beirut, imminently ”, Lebanon, Israel, Lebanese, Nabih Berri, Lebanon’s, Israeli, Gaza, Al Awsat

☆ Lebanese cease-fire efforts inch ahead as Israel keeps up fierce bombardment
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-15 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

Months of U.S. efforts to broker a deal between Washington’s ally Israel and Hezbollah have so far failed. In another potentially promising sign, a senior Lebanese official signalled that Hezbollah would pull its forces away from the Lebanese-Israeli border under a ceasefire. Its terms require Hezbollah to remove fighters and weapons from areas between the border and the Litani River, which runs about 20 miles from Lebanon’s southern border. After 2006, Israel complained Hezbollah fighters and weapons remained in the border are while Lebanon accused Israel of violating the resolution by sending warplanes into its airspace. Hezbollah attacks have killed about 100 civilians and soldiers in northern Israel, the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights and southern Lebanon over the last year, according to Israel.

Persons: Israel, “, ”, Ayat, Nabih Berri, Ali Hamdan, Ibrahim, Eli Cohen, Biden, Donald Trump, Benjamin Netanyahu, Ali Hassan Khalil, Al Jazeera, Amos Hochstein, Hochstein, Khalil, Cohen, Jean, Pierre Lacroix Organizations: Lebanon’s National News Agency, NBC News, Reuters, Ibrahim Amro, Getty, Washington Post, Trump, Israel, Lebanese, Security, Hezbollah, United Nations, Bank Locations: Lebanon, Beirut, Iran, Baalbek, U.S, Israel, Ghobeiry, Beirut's, AFP, Gaza, Lebanese, Israeli, Lebanon’s, The U.S, Golan

☆ Lebanon ceasefire talks intensify as Hezbollah considers new US-Israeli proposal
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-15 | by ( Tamara Qiblawi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Hezbollah is considering a US-Israeli ceasefire proposal, sources told CNN, as diplomatic efforts to end the conflict between Israel and the Lebanese militant group intensify. The US ambassador to Lebanon, Lisa Johnson, relayed the proposal to the Lebanese government on Thursday night, a Lebanese official familiar with the discussions told CNN. Those efforts were upended when Israel killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in a major bombing attack in Beirut’s southern suburbs. Another Lebanese official familiar with the discussions around the ceasefire told CNN that US President-elect Donald Trump has endorsed the ongoing negotiations, which have been spearheaded by the Biden administration’s special envoy to Lebanon, Amos Hochstein. The US embassy in Beirut declined CNN’s request for comment on the ceasefire negotiations.

Persons: Lisa Johnson, Johnson, Nabih Berri –, –, Israel, Hassan Nasrallah, Donald Trump, Biden, Amos Hochstein, “, CNN’s Organizations: CNN, Lebanese, UN, Lebanese Armed Forces Locations: Israel, Lebanese, Lebanon, Beirut’s, Lebanon’s, Beirut

☆ Iran's big gamble on ballistic missiles is being tested like never before
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-07 | by ( ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

At the same time, it has still prioritized building offensive ballistic missiles to deter and strike its adversaries. Several reports go so far as to report that Iran's entire arsenal of Russian-built S-300 air defense systems was hit. Related storiesThere are reasons to be skeptical about the extent of damage to Iran's air defenses. Israel's attack was retaliation for Iran's enormous October 1 ballistic missile strike. Unlike its foe Israel, which has built one of the world's most advanced air defense systems, Iran has focused on developing strike missiles.

Persons: —, Tehran's, Joe Biden's, Amos Hochstein, hasn't, Arash Azizi, Boston University's Frederick S, James Devine, Israel, Farzin, Nadimi, Azizi, Devine Organizations: Service, Boston University's, Pardee Center, Iran's, Department of Politics, Relations, Mount Allison University, Washington Institute for Near East, AIM, Phoenix, Soviet Union, American Hawk Locations: Iran, Russia, Ukraine, Israel, Tehran, Moscow, Iraq, Soviet, American, China, North Korea

Sirens sounded in central and northern Israel Saturday and the Israeli military continued to pummel Lebanon and Gaza, as cease-fire talks held this week yielded little hope of ending hostilities on the ground. The Israeli military bombed targets in Beirut's densely-populated southern suburbs overnight after warning residents to evacuate. It was the first time in several days that the area, a Hezbollah stronghold, had been hit. The Lebanese Health Ministry said 52 people were killed by the Israeli strikes, and 72 injured across the country on Friday. Health workers in Gaza told Reuters that at least 68 people were killed in Israeli strikes in the last 24 hours.

Persons: Israel, OMAR AL, Magen David Adom, Lior, Bill Burns, Abdel Fattah el, Hassan Rashad ., Brett McGurk, Amos Hochstein, Najib Mikati, Mikati, McGurk, Hochstein, Benjamin Netanyahu's, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, United States “, General Mohammad Naeini, “, ” Organizations: Israel Defense Forces, United Nations, Hamas, Lebanese Health Ministry, . Health, Reuters, Getty, Iran’s, Iran ”, CIA, American, Friday Reuters, Iranian, United, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Locations: Israel, Lebanon, Gaza, Northern Gaza, ”, AFP, United States, Tira, Tel Aviv, Red Sea . U.S, Cairo, Iran, Fars, North Gaza

Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati attends a press conference in Paris, France, on October 24. “We are doing our best and are optimistic that within the next few hours or days we will have a ceasefire,” Lebanon’s caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said Wednesday in an interview with Lebanese media outlet Al Jadeed. Any progress at lowering temperatures in the region will be considered a win inside the White House. CIA Director Bill Burns was in Cairo on Thursday for discussions on Gaza and Lebanon, including a meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi. Read more about the diplomatic push.

Persons: Najib Mikati, Sarah Meyssonnier, Benjamin Netanyahu, ”, Netanyahu, Biden, –, Bill Burns, Abdel Fattah El, Amos Hochstein, Brett McGurk, Hochstein Organizations: Reuters American, CIA, White Locations: Paris, France, Gaza, Lebanon, Israel, Cairo, Iran

☆ US makes final ceasefire push before election but doubts progress will be made in Gaza before next US president is known
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-31 | by ( Kevin Liptak | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CIA Director Bill Burns was in Cairo on Thursday for discussions on Gaza and Lebanon, including a meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi. The US envoys also met Israeli defense minister Yoav Gallant to discuss “security arrangements” related to northern Israel, Lebanon and the return of hostages from Gaza. That makes it likely the war in Gaza will continue shadowing the US contest in its final days. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks at the opening of the 25th Parliament session in Jerusalem on October 28, 2024. The White House offered the same message; National Security Council spokesperson Sean Savett said purported drafts shared online do not reflect the current state of ceasefire talks.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, ”, Najib Mikati, Netanyahu, Biden, –, Bill Burns, Abdel Fattah El, Amos Hochstein, Brett McGurk, Hochstein, McGurk, Israel, Yoav Gallant, Kamala Harris ’, “, ” Harris, Debbie Hill, Harris, Burns, Yahya Sinwar, David Barnea, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman, Lebanon’s Mikati, Sean Savett, CNN’s Lauren Izso, Alex Marquardt, Mostafa Salem Organizations: CNN, American, CIA, White, “, University of Wisconsin -, Getty, Democratic, Hamas, Qatari, Hezbollah, White House, National Security Locations: Gaza, Lebanon, Israel, Cairo, Iran, Madison, University of Wisconsin - Madison, “, Jerusalem, AFP, United States, Qatar, Egypt, Doha, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al Thani, ” Israel

☆ Israel’s military leaders signal their work in Gaza and Lebanon is done. Will Netanyahu listen?
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-31 | by ( Mick Krever | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

It comes as Lebanon’s prime minister says that a ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel could be imminent. In Gaza, he said, “if we take out the northern Gaza Brigade commander, it’s another collapse…. Amir Cohen/ReutersIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly pledged “absolute victory.” His defense minister and longtime political tormentor Yoav Gallant has bristled at that goal. That’s a far cry from the existing, maximalist war aim of eliminating Hamas’ military and governance capabilities. A spokesperson for the prime minister declined to comment.

Persons: –, ” Herzi Halevi, Staff Herzi Halevi, Amir Cohen, Benjamin Netanyahu, ”, Yoav Gallant, ” Gallant, Najib Mikati, Amos Hochstein, Israel, Hassan Nasrallah, Mikati, Ariel Hermoni, Gallant, “, Netanyahu Organizations: Jerusalem CNN, Israel Defense Forces ’, “, General Staff, Hezbollah, Gaza, Staff, Reuters, CNN, Defense, State Locations: Jerusalem, Lebanon, Gaza, Israel, there’s, Reuters Israeli, we’re, Iran, Qatar

TEL AVIV — Senior White House officials will travel to Israel on Thursday, a U.S. official and a source briefed on the matter told NBC News, as the Biden administration intensifies efforts to end the conflicts in Lebanon and the Gaza Strip. The officials are expected to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss the possibility of a deal to end the fighting in Lebanon, the source said. Brett McGurk, National Security Council coordinator for the Middle East, and Amos Hochstein, a U.S. special envoy with a focus on Lebanon, are also expected to meet other senior Israeli officials, the source said. McGurk and Hochstein will engage the U.S. ally on a range of issues including Gaza, Lebanon, hostages and Iran, the U.S. official said. But the visit of McGurk and Hochstein comes amid growing optimism in Israel that a cease-fire with Hezbollah in Lebanon could now be reached without a deal to end the war in Gaza.

Persons: Biden, Benjamin Netanyahu, Brett McGurk, Amos Hochstein, McGurk, Hochstein, Michael “ Erik ” Kurilla, William Burns, Hassan Nasrallah, ” Organizations: TEL AVIV — Senior White House, U.S, NBC, National Security, U.S . Central Command, CIA Locations: TEL, Israel, Lebanon, Gaza, U.S, Iran, Cairo, Hezbollah

Washington had pressed its ally in the hopes of ending the cycle of attacks and avoiding escalation into a wider war. Blinken said the U.S. is tracking the aid deliveries very carefully and “absolutely essential” that Israel comply. "Israel has achieved most of its strategic objectives when it comes to Gaza,” Blinken said in Tel Aviv. (It also signed off on $9.5 billion in humanitarian aid for Gaza, as well as the conflict zones of Ukraine and Sudan.) But far-fetched as it might seem, it came up during Blinken’s meeting with the Saudi crown prince during this trip.

Persons: Antony Blinken, Benjamin Netanyahu, it’d, Yahya Sinwar, Isaac Herzog, Nathan Howard, Amos Hochstein, Donald Trump, Netanyahu —, Netanyahu, Blinken, Israel, ” Blinken, “ It’s, Ibrahim Fakhroo, Sinwar, William Burns, Khalil al, “, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Joe Biden, Ayman Safadi, we’ve, ” It’s Organizations: State Department, Getty, Israel, Hamas, Trump, Qatar's Ministry of Foreign, CIA, Qatari, Senior, Palestinian Authority, Saudi Crown, U.S, U.S . Locations: United States, Israel, Iran, Washington, Gaza, Egypt, Lebanon, Blinken, Tel Aviv, AFP, U.S, Beirut, Saudi Arabia, Doha, Qatar, Riyadh, Ukraine, Sudan, Saudi, Palestinian, Jordanian, London

ReutersLebanon’s Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib told CNN that Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah had agreed to a 21-day ceasefire just days before he was assassinated by Israel. “He [Nasrallah] agreed, he agreed,” Habib told Christiane Amanpour in an interview aired on Wednesday. ]”White House senior adviser Amos Hochstein was then set to go to Lebanon to negotiate the ceasefire, Habib continued. We need the United States’ help. Whether we get it or not, we’re not sure yet, but [the] United States is very important, vital for the ceasefire to happen,” said Habib.

Persons: Hassan Nasrallah, Abdallah Bou Habib, Israel, Joe Biden, Emmanuel Macron, Nasrallah, ” Habib, Christiane Amanpour, “, Nabih Berri, Benjamin, Netanyahu, Biden, Macron, Amos Hochstein, Habib, Washington, ”, we’re Organizations: Reuters Lebanon’s, CNN, US, UN, Assembly, White House, European Union, United Arab Emirates, United Locations: Sidon, Lebanon, Beirut's, Lebanese, Beirut, United States, France, Australia, Canada, Germany, Italy, Japan, Saudi Arabia, United Kingdom, Qatar, States

☆ Hezbollah leader agreed to temporary ceasefire days before assassination, says Lebanese FM
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-03 | by ( Pauline Lockwood | Manveena Suri | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Lebanon’s Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour that Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah had agreed to a 21-day ceasefire just days before he was assassinated by Israel. “He [Nasrallah] agreed, he agreed,” Habib told Christiane Amanpour in an interview aired on Wednesday. ]”White House senior adviser Amos Hochstein was then set to go to Lebanon to negotiate the ceasefire, Habib continued. A second source familiar with the talks agreed that the US was aware that Hezbollah was agreeing to the ceasefire. We need the United States’ help.

Persons: CNN —, Abdallah Bou Habib, CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, Hassan Nasrallah, Israel, Joe Biden, Emmanuel Macron, Nasrallah, ” Habib, Christiane Amanpour, “, Nabih Berri, Benjamin, Netanyahu, Biden, Macron, Amos Hochstein, Habib, Matthew Miller, ” Miller, Benjajmin Netanyahu, Washington, ”, we’re Organizations: CNN, CNN — Lebanon’s, US, UN, Assembly, White House, European Union, United Arab Emirates, ”, Biden, United Locations: Lebanon, Lebanese, Beirut, United States, France, Australia, Canada, Germany, Italy, Japan, Saudi Arabia, United Kingdom, Qatar, Israel, States

Destruction in a area targeted by Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon's town of Saksakiyeh, on September 26, 2024. Mahmoud Zayyat/AFP/Getty ImagesIsrael said it is considering a US-led ceasefire proposal that would see a 21-day pause in fighting in Lebanon, as fears rise of a fully-fledged war between Israel and Hezbollah that risks escalating into a wider regional conflict. • Has Hezbollah agreed? : Hezbollah has not yet commented on the proposed deal, and Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati has denied reports of signing the framework for Lebanon. Media reports claimed earlier that Mikati signed a ceasefire proposal after meeting US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and envoy Amos Hochstein on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.

Persons: Mahmoud Zayyat, Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, Joe Biden, •, Najib Mikati, Mikati, Antony Blinken, Amos Hochstein, Netanyahu Organizations: Getty, United Nations General Assembly, European Union, United Arab, Media, UN, Assembly Locations: Lebanon's, Saksakiyeh, AFP, Lebanon, Israel, New York, United States, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar

Destruction in a area targeted by Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon's town of Saksakiyeh, on September 26, 2024. Mahmoud Zayyat/AFP/Getty ImagesIsrael said it is considering a US-led ceasefire proposal that would see a 21-day pause in fighting in Lebanon, as fears rise of a fully-fledged war between Israel and Hezbollah that risks escalating into a wider regional conflict. : President Joe Biden said the plan had been endorsed by the United States, Australia, Canada, the European Union, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar. : Hezbollah has not yet commented on the proposed deal, and Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati has denied reports of signing the framework for Lebanon. Media reports claimed earlier that Mikati signed a ceasefire proposal after meeting US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and envoy Amos Hochstein on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.

CNN —The United States is working urgently on a plan to mediate a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, according to three sources familiar with the matter, as officials eye with deepening concern the prospects of a widening conflict. The efforts come as Israel’s top general said Wednesday that the Israeli military is preparing for a possible ground incursion into Lebanon. Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has given the green light for his government to engage with the US efforts, an Israeli official told CNN. Amos Hochstein, a senior White House adviser, is involved, the source said, adding that the Americans are not talking to Hezbollah directly. Because while there’s a very legitimate issue here, we don’t think that war is the solution,” he told NBC News.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, Netanyahu, Amos Hochstein, Joe Biden, ”, Antony Blinken Organizations: CNN, Israel’s, White House, United Nations General, UN Security, West Bank, NBC News Locations: United States, Israel, France, Gaza, Lebanon, New York

Israel has a new war goal, adding to mounting signs that the conflict could soon expand to the country's north as it warned the U.S. that “military action” would likely be the only way to addressing mounting hostilities with Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah. "Israel will continue to act to implement this objective," the prime minister's office said. Noam Galai / Getty Images fileIt added that the defense minister and a number of other senior Israel Defense Forces officials "presented the IDF's operations against Hezbollah forces" to Hochstein. The U.S. and others have voiced fears that an expanded military operation from its ally could spark a broader regional war. But the prime minister’s office told NBC News in a statement on Monday that reports of any negotiations with Sa’ar were “not correct.”

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu's, Amos Hochstein, Joe Biden, Yoav Gallant, Gallant, Noam Galai, swirled, Netanyahu, Gideon Sa’ar, Sa’ar, ” Organizations: U.S, Hezbollah, Israeli, Israel Defense Forces, New, NBC News Locations: Israel, Iran, Israel's, Lebanon, Gaza, U.S

☆ Analysis: Lebanon’s pager explosions send message to Hezbollah
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-17 | by ( Nick Paton Walsh | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

London CNN —Is it a prelude to a wider attack or the totality of the message to Hezbollah? The risk of widespread war with Israel again has become a pressing reality since the October 7 attacks. It places Hezbollah, however, in another unenviable moment of frailty – plunged into chaos, with great pressure upon them to project strength again. Hezbollah will still be able to inflict significant damage upon Israel if a full-scale battle erupts. But Israel may have decided too cleanly that Hezbollah seeks to avoid war, and therefore can be goaded repeatedly.

Persons: Yoav Gallant, Amos Hochstein, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, Ismail Haniyeh, –, Fu’ad Shukr, Hassan Nasrallah, Israel Organizations: London CNN, Getty Locations: Lebanese, Lebanon, Israel, “, Tehran, Beirut, AFP

☆ Israel expands war objectives, eyeing northern front as tensions with Hezbollah continue unabated
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-17 | by ( Tamar Michaelis | Benjamin Brown | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Israel has added another objective to its ongoing conflict with Hamas and Hezbollah: ensuring the safe return of residents from communities along its border with Lebanon to their homes. He added that Israel will “do what is necessary” to safeguard the region’s security and return the residents to their homes. Hezbollah has said that it will end its attacks on Israel when Israel ends its war in Gaza. Gallant’s fateThe addition to Israel’s war aims comes amid reports in Israel that Netanyahu plans to replace Gallant with a former rival politician, Gideon Sa’ar. Unlike Gallant, who served for decades in the Israel Defense Forces, Sa’ar is a near lifelong politician.

Persons: CNN —, Benjamin Netanyahu’s, Netanyahu, Amos Hochstein, Yoav Gallant, Hochstein, ” Hochstein, Axios, Israel, Gallant, Gideon Sa’ar, Benny Gantz, ” Organizations: CNN, Hamas, Hezbollah, Lebanese Ministry of Public Health, Israel Defense Forces Locations: CNN — Israel, Lebanon, Israel, Israel’s, Tel Aviv, ”, Gaza, Sa’ar’s

☆ Oil prices lower due to high U.S. production and weak Chinese demand: Biden's senior energy advisor
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-12 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailOil prices lower due to high U.S. production and weak Chinese demand: Biden's senior energy advisorAmos Hochstein, senior advisor to President Biden for energy and investment, joins 'Squawk Box' to discuss why energy prices are down as much as they are, struggling energy markets around the world, and more.

Persons: Amos Hochstein, Biden

☆ The Israel-Hezbollah war that no one wants could finally blow up
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-28 | by ( Analysis Elliott Gotkine | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

“We are approaching the moment of an all-out war against Hezbollah,” he said in an Israeli television interview on Saturday evening. And yet, over the past near-10 months of fighting, Israel, Hezbollah and Iran have always pulled back from what appeared to be the brink. All-out war failed to materialise. All-out war failed to materialise. The best way to avoid all-out war between Israel and Hezbollah, says Blinken, is to get a ceasefire in Gaza.

Persons: Amos Hochstein, Joe Biden’s, ”, Majdal Shams, Will Hochstein’s, Israel Katz, Antony Blinken, We’re, Naftali Bennett, “, Aaron David Miller, Israel, can’t, Yoav Gallant, didn’t Organizations: CNN, Carnegie Endowment, International Peace, Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps, UN, Israeli Locations: Israel, Lebanese, Golan, Chebaa, Lebanon, Majdal, United States, Iran, Beirut, Damascus, Gaza

☆ A Biden Confidant Emerges as a Crucial Mideast Diplomat
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-10 | by ( Michael Crowley | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

A few weeks before Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, a senior White House official visited southern Lebanon for a sightseeing trip that doubled as a dramatic political statement. The official, Amos Hochstein, one of President Biden’s most trusted national security advisers, toured the ancient ruins of Baalbek in an area well known as a stronghold of Hezbollah, a U.S.-designated terrorist group sponsored by Iran. Wearing white pants and a golf shirt, and with no security entourage, Mr. Hochstein marveled at the artifacts and snapped photos of the onetime Roman city’s crumbling stone walls and columns. Keeping watch from a distance were several muscular men in black T-shirts — presumed Hezbollah militiamen. The trip caused a minor sensation in Lebanese news media, which wondered how a top American official — one born in Israel, no less — was able to move so freely on Hezbollah turf.

Persons: Amos Hochstein, Biden’s, Hochstein marveled Organizations: White House, Iran Locations: Israel, Lebanon, Baalbek, U.S

☆ Israel Kills a Top Commander of Hezbollah, Which Replies With a Rocket Barrage
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-03 | by ( Euan Ward | Thomas Fuller | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Israeli forces killed a senior Hezbollah commander on Wednesday in a drone strike in southern Lebanon, prompting the Lebanese militia to retaliate with a heavy rocket barrage across the border. The flare-up came as Western diplomats worked to avoid a full-scale war between Israel and Hezbollah, a danger that appears to have grown in recent weeks. Cross-border exchanges of fire have intensified, and Israeli officials have publicly spoken of shifting their military focus from Hamas in the Gaza Strip to Hezbollah, a far more advanced and potent threat. Jean-Yves Le Drian, President Emmanuel Macron’s special envoy to Lebanon, was among the people with whom he met, according to a person close to the talks, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomacy. He said Mr. Nasser had led Hezbollah’s Aziz unit, one of the group’s main fighting forces along the Lebanese border.

Persons: Amos Hochstein, Jean, Yves Le Drian, Emmanuel Macron’s, Mohammad Naameh Nasser, Abu Naameh, Mr, Nasser, Hezbollah’s Aziz Organizations: Hezbollah, White, U.S, French Locations: Lebanon, Western, Israel, Gaza, tamping, Paris, Lebanese

☆ Biden and Netanyahu are expected to meet later this month in Washington, source says
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-02 | by ( Mj Lee | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —President Joe Biden and Benjamin Netanyahu are expected to meet in Washington, DC, in several weeks when the Israeli prime minister visits to address Congress on July 24, a source familiar told CNN. US and Israeli officials are still in the process of nailing down logistical details for the Biden-Netanyahu meeting, which would likely take place at the White House, the source said. A White House official told CNN that Biden has known Netanyahu for decades, and that “they will likely see each other when the Prime Minister is here over the course of that week. But we have nothing to announce at this time.”CNN has also reached out to the prime minister’s office for comment. Last month, Biden said in an interview that Netanyahu may be dragging out the war in an attempt to cling to power and said it was “uncertain” whether Israel had committed war crimes.

Persons: Joe Biden, Benjamin Netanyahu, Netanyahu, Biden, “, ”, ” Biden, Israel, Antony Blinken “, Amos Hochstein, Netanyahu’s, CNN’s Jack Forrest, Christian Edwards, Tara John, Kevin Liptak, Natasha Bertrand, Arlette Saenz, Jennifer Hansler, Kylie Atwood, Melanie Zanona, Oren Liebermann, Piper Hudspeth Blackburn Organizations: CNN, Biden, White, ” CNN Locations: Washington , DC, Israel, Gaza, Tel Aviv, Washington

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