Iran's Araghchi: No US deal without Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon

Shafaq News- Tehran

Iran has tied any prospective agreement with the United States to an end of Israeli hostilities and a full withdrawal from the “Lebanese occupied territory,” Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi noted on Friday, affirming that Tehran will not abandon Hezbollah.

In remarks carried by Iran's semi-official Fars News Agency, Araghchi stated that no agreement has been finalized with Washington, adding that the terms under discussion remain fluid and subject to change. He also described diplomacy as a mechanism to “consolidate shifts on the ground,” stressing that negotiations are driven by balance-of-power dynamics, while cautioning that threats tend to backfire.

Earlier today, Israel's Channel 12 reported that US President Donald Trump informed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the proposed accord was “excellent” and that the time had come to end the war. Citing a source familiar with the discussions, the broadcaster indicated that Israel's political leadership instructed the military to scale back operations in southern Lebanon to avoid undermining the prospective deal.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif previously conveyed that the United States and Iran had reached a final text for a peace agreement, describing it as closer to implementation than at any point since negotiations began.