Israel, Lebanon agree ceasefire

Israel and Lebanon agreed a ceasefire as the US sought to revive truce talks with Iran, though the effort was quickly put into doubt. Israeli hardliners and members of Hezbollah criticized the newly agreed deal, while Lebanon said Israel struck its territory soon after the agreement was put in place, after an April truce was repeatedly undermined. The ceasefire is part of efforts by the Trump administration to inject momentum into negotiations with Iran: Washington wants to separate the Israel-Lebanon talks from those involving Tehran, but Iran insists they be linked. Still, despite worries over the latest ceasefire, oil prices fell; two experts wrote in Foreign Policy that “de-escalation, rather than lasting peace, is still important.”