IMRA Middle East News Updates

Lebanese President Aoun: Goal Is Israeli Withdrawal - Not Disarming Hezbollah

Fri, 17 Apr 2026 11:32:25 -0400

Lebanese President Aoun: Goal Is Israeli Withdrawal - Not Disarming
Hezbollah
Dr. Aaron Lerner 17 April 2026

As President Aoun sees it, the goal of the talks with Israel is to have them
withdraw and resolve border disputes (aka - have Israel withdraw form parts
of Israel).

Please note that MP Ghassan Hasbani, who is quoted below saying "we affirmed
that when Beirut is safe we will have a launch for all of Lebanon safe and
free of weapons" does not represent the government or the presidency. He is
an opposition MP.

In sharp contrast, the most that President Aoun is willing to say is that
"the Lebanese Army will play a fundamental role after the withdrawal of the
Israeli forces in terms of deployment up to the international southern
borders and ending the armed manifestations and reassuring the southerners
after their return to their villages and towns, that there are no armed
forces other than the army and the legitimate security forces."

So President Aoun won't even talk about disarming Hezbollah in general. And
when it comes to South Lebanon, the goal that "that there are no armed
forces other than the army and the legitimate security forces" is almost an
afterthought.

If President Trump is serious about resolving the situation and not a photo
op, he should endorse achieving MP Ghassan Hasbani's goal of disarming
Hezbollah everywhere in Lebanon.

First: Disarm Hezbollah in the Beirut area.

Second: Disarm Hezbollah in other areas not now under the control of the
IDF.

Only then: Replacement of IDF forces with Lebanese Army forces in a
systematic polygon-by-polygon approach.

English translation of official Lebanese report of Pres. Aoun's remarks
regarding ceasefire
https://www.presidency.gov.lb/posts/reys-aljmhwryh-amam-wfd-mn-nwab-byrwt-mq
arbh-mrhlh-ma-bad-wqf-atlaq-alnar-tttlb-whdh-fy-almwaqf-alwtnyh-wtdhamna-sya
sya-jamaa-ma-aldwlh-lan-almfawdhat-almbashrh-dqyqh-wmfslyh-j93261938403019
(Website of the Lebanon Presidency)
Official private meetings 17 April 2026

President of the Republic before a delegation of Beirut MPs: The approach to
the post-ceasefire phase requires unity in national positions and
comprehensive political solidarity with the state because the direct
negotiations are delicate and pivotal.

President Aoun: The ceasefire is the gateway to proceeding with the
negotiations and an option that receives local and external support.

President of the Republic: National responsibility must be one in the next
phase and the Lebanese are today facing a new reality that has received Arab
and international support.

MP Hasbani: We sensed from His Excellency the President that there is
seriousness and solid sponsorship for the issue of negotiations and we
affirmed that when Beirut is safe we will have a launch for all of Lebanon
safe and free of weapons.

MP Khalaf: President Aoun affirmed that the opportunity that Lebanon has
reached through the ceasefire is a pivotal and essential station in a path
that awaits it to achieve greater stability for this tormented homeland.

President of the Republic General Joseph Aoun affirmed during his reception
of a delegation of Beirut MPs that the direct negotiations are delicate and
pivotal and that national responsibility must be one in the next phase, and
that the eyes of the world are directed towards Lebanon, stressing that the
goal of the Lebanese state from the negotiations is to consolidate the
ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the occupied southern
territories and the recovery of the prisoners and the resolution of the
disputes occurring between Lebanon and Israel on a number of border points.

And President Aoun informed the parliamentary delegation that the approach
to the post-ceasefire phase requires unity in national positions and
comprehensive political solidarity with the state so that the ability of the
Lebanese team to achieve what the negotiations aimed for is not weakened,
especially with regard to consolidating the ceasefire which is considered
the gateway to proceeding with the negotiations and it is an option that
receives local and external support, the most prominent manifestations of
which was what US President Donald Trump announced during the phone call
yesterday of support for Lebanon and its sovereignty and independence and
the safety of its lands, in addition to the United States standing by the
Lebanese people to end their suffering and regain their well-being and
reactivate their economy which was negatively affected as a result of the
recent war.

And President Aoun affirmed that the Lebanese Army will play a fundamental
role after the withdrawal of the Israeli forces in terms of deployment up to
the international southern borders and ending the armed manifestations and
reassuring the southerners after their return to their villages and towns,
that there are no armed forces other than the army and the legitimate
security forces.

And President Aoun stressed that the Lebanese who have endured a lot in the
past years are today facing a new reality that has received Arab and
international support and this opportunity must not be wasted because it may
not be repeated.

________________________________________
IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis

Since 1992 providing news and analysis on the Middle East with a focus on Arab-Israeli relations

Website: www.imra.org.il

Following the Egypt-Israel model, full diplomatic relations before Israel Withdraws

Fri, 17 Apr 2026 10:29:16 -0400

Following the Egypt-Israel model, full diplomatic relations before Israel
Withdraws
Dr. Aaron Lerner 17 April 2026

26 March 1979: The Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty was signed in Washington, D.C..
This treaty included mutual recognition, end of the state of war, and
normalization of relations in exchange for Israel's complete withdrawal from
the Sinai Peninsula.

26 January 1980: Full diplomatic relations were officially established
between Israel and Egypt.

26 February 26, 1980: Ambassadors were exchanged (Eliyahu Ben-Elissar became
Israel's first ambassador to Egypt).

25 April 25, 1982: Israel completed its full withdrawal from the Sinai
Peninsula (the process took about three years, with phased withdrawals).
________________________________________
IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis

Since 1992 providing news and analysis on the Middle East with a focus on Arab-Israeli relations

Website: www.imra.org.il

Weekly Commentary: Hamas Refusal To Disarm Challenges Trump's Word

Thu, 16 Apr 2026 17:26:13 -0400

Weekly Commentary: Hamas Refusal To Disarm Challenges Trump's Word
Dr. Aaron Lerner 16 April 2026

"They said they were going to disarm, and if they don't disarm, we will
disarm them. it will happen quickly and perhaps violently. But they will
disarm, do you understand me?"
President Trump 14 October 2025 talking with reporters at the White House
(during a meeting with Argentinian President Javier Milei)

"Hamas must IMMEDIATELY honor its commitments, including the return of the
final body to Israel, and proceed without delay to full Demilitarization. As
I have said before, they can do this the easy way, or the hard way. The
people of Gaza have suffered long enough."
President Trump TruthSocial 16 January 2026

Hamas has rejected the disarmament plan of a top figure in President Donald
Trump's Gaza peace efforts, a senior Palestinian official familiar with the
negotiations has told the BBC.
14 April 2026 BBC https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn4vvxxg8lgo

You can view the situation with Iran and Lebanon through rose-colored
glasses (aided possibly by some mental gymnastics) to conclude
optimistically that Mr. Trump remains committed to the goals which were set.

But it requires blinders to ignore what's happening in Gaza.

Hamas had ostensibly agreed to disarm within the framework of President
Trump's plan, and now they reject that framework.

President Trump was crystal clear about what would happen to Hamas if they
rejected the deal.

But now he and his entire team is stone-silent regarding this development.

And Iran and Hezbollah, not to mention China and others, are taking notes.

Because Gaza is the simplest test.

What happens or doesn't happen in Gaza has absolutely no impact on the world
economy.

No American troops need to risk their lives.

And while some potential voters may scream about Gaza, there is a laundry
list of other concerns which take precedence over what they may feel about
Gaza when they decide who to elect to Congress in November.

I can appreciate that it would not be pleasant for President Trump to
concede that his bosom buddy Erdogan and others he has lauded didn't deliver
the goods.

But, then again, Mr. Trump can simply ignore that they failed him as he
gives us the green light to act decisively against Hamas.

Yes.

Iran and Hezbollah, not to mention China and others, are taking notes.

If President Trump willingly ignores an inconvenient reality regarding
Hamas, why should they take him seriously in substantially more challenging
situations?

________________________________________
IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis

Since 1992 providing news and analysis on the Middle East with a focus on
Arab-Israeli relations

Website: www.imra.org.il

FMs from UK, France, etc.: quiet in Lebanon more important than disarming Hezbollah

Wed, 15 Apr 2026 16:51:23 -0400

FMs from UK, France, etc.: quiet in Lebanon more important than disarming
Hezbollah

Lebanon: Joint Foreign Ministers' Statement, 14 April 2026
Statement on Lebanon by the Foreign Ministers of Australia, Belgium,
Croatia, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Greece, Iceland, Ireland,
Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain,
Sweden, and the United Kingdom.
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/lebanon-joint-foreign-ministers-statement
-14-april-2026

From: Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office and The Rt Hon Yvette
Cooper MP
Published 14 April 2026

We, Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Australia, Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus,
Denmark, Finland, France, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Malta, the
Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and the United
Kingdom, call for the inclusion of Lebanon in the regional de-escalation
efforts and urge all parties to work toward a lasting political solution.
The continuation of the war in Lebanon puts at risks the current regional
de-escalation, which we have welcomed and must be fully respected by all
parties.

We welcome the initiative by President Aoun to open direct talks with Israel
and the acceptance by Israel to start the talks facilitated by the United
States. We call on both parties to seize this opportunity. Direct
negotiations can pave the way to bring lasting security for Lebanon and
Israel as well as the region. We stand ready to support them. We therefore
call upon all parties to urgently deescalate and seize the opportunity
offered by the ceasefire between the United States and Iran.

We condemn in the strongest terms the attacks of Hezbollah against Israel
which must cease immediately. We also condemn in the strongest terms the
massive Israeli strikes on Lebanon conducted on 8 April which, according to
the latest information shared by the Lebanese authorities, resulted in the
death of more than 350 persons and wounded more than 1000. Civilians and
civilian infrastructure must be protected in accordance with international
humanitarian law.

We also condemn in the strongest terms the attacks against UNIFIL and we
reiterate that the safety and security of UN peacekeepers must be ensured at
all times.

We express our full solidarity and our steadfast support for the Lebanese
people and authorities. We stand ready to provide emergency assistance to
the more than one million displaced persons in Lebanon, in coordination with
the Lebanese government.

We reaffirm the importance of respecting for Lebanon's territorial integrity
and sovereignty and for the full implementation of United Nations Security
Council resolution 1701 (2006). We will continue to support the Lebanese
state to exercise its full sovereignty over the whole Lebanese territory. In
this context, we commend the decision of the Lebanese government to ban
Hezbollah's military activities, as well as its decision to reinforce the
full imposition of state authority over Beirut and to have the sole monopoly
on weapons, and we encourage full and swift implementation.
________________________________________
IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis

Since 1992 providing news and analysis on the Middle East with a focus on
Arab-Israeli relations

Website: www.imra.org.il

Moving On - President Trump Abandons Permanent Nuke Ban, Opens Talks With 20-Year Offer

Tue, 14 Apr 2026 10:31:50 -0400

Moving On - President Trump Abandons Permanent Nuke Ban, Opens Talks With
20-Year Offer
Dr. Aaron Lerner 14 April 2026

On Holocaust Remembrance Day, we learned that President Trump had his Vice
President, Vance, offer the Iranians the option to resume nuclear enrichment
in 20 years.

The people of Hong Kong are a living reminder that the consequences can be
disastrous when even a 99-year arrangement comes to an end (China took over
on 1 July 1997).

Twenty years is the blink of an eye.

And 20 years was the opening offer!

There is every reason to believe that virtually every person who will rule
Iran when it is allowed to resume enriching uranium is already part of the
ruling regime dedicated to the destruction of the USA and Israel.

We Israelis and our Sunni neighbors must make the most of this situation.

We are compelled to do everything in our power to be able to contend with
Iran when America not only turns its back on the situation but may even act
to limit our ability to respond, should doing so conflict with what it
considers its interests at that time.

This means not only being at the leading edge of military technologies but
also having the industrial base to be U.S. and/or European weapons boycott
proof.

To be clear: I am not in any way claiming that President Trump intends to
abandon us.

Even our wisest king, Solomon, made mistakes - with disastrous results.

Mr. Trump genuinely does not believe he is abandoning us.

But we must be realistic.

We need to make the most of our relationship with President Trump to
expedite the achievement of true military independence.

This goes far beyond financial and manufacturing resources.

It requires a significant increase in GDP - one that can only be achieved if
all sectors of our society abandon "poverty by choice."

It also means ensuring that this and future generations of Israelis are
provided with the best possible education, so that we have the brainpower to
maintain our critical position at the forefront of military and other
technologies.

We have been blessed by a unique - albeit at times painful - combination of
circumstances that provides both the breathing space and a coalition of
Sunni neighbors, making it possible to meet this tremendous challenge.

Our future is, indeed, in our hands.

[It would be welcome if reports of the 20-year moratorium offer are
ultimately denied. But as of this writing, they have not been.]

________________________________________
IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis

Since 1992 providing news and analysis on the Middle East with a focus on
Arab-Israeli relations

Website: www.imra.org.il

Trump’s 20 year moratorium offer - becomes a Bernard Shaw joke

Tue, 14 Apr 2026 06:19:28 -0400

Trump’s 20 year moratorium offer - becomes a Bernard Shaw joke
Dr. Aaron Lerner 14 April 2026

President Trump’s offer to postpone an Iranian nuke by twenty years — a gross abandonment of his red line — turns himself into the lady in the George Bernard Shaw joke:

A well-known society lady was approached by George Bernard Shaw at a party.

Shaw asked her:
“Madam, would you sleep with me for a million pounds?”

After a moment’s thought, the lady replied:
“Yes, I suppose I would.”

Shaw then said:
“Would you sleep with me for ten pounds?”

The woman was shocked and angrily exclaimed:
“What do you take me for? A prostitute?!”

Shaw calmly replied:
“Madam, we have already established what you are. Now we are merely haggling over the price.”
_______________________________________
IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis

Since 1992 providing news and analysis on the Middle East with a focus on Arab-Israeli relations

Website: http://www.imra.org.il