The Israel-Lebanon recipe for never-ending war

TEL AVIV—Late last month, Lebanon and Israel signed a framework agreement with the United States that Lebanon’s chief negotiator, Nada Hamadeh Moawad, described as a “first step on the road to restoring Lebanese sovereignty and territorial integrity.” But, as the agreement implicitly acknowledges, Israel is not the only threat to Lebanon’s sovereignty.

The departure of the Israel Defense Forces from southern Lebanon hinges on the “verified disarmament” of Iran’s proxy, Hezbollah.

The terms of the framework agreement, negotiated with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, contradict those of the latest memorandum of understanding U.S. Vice President JD Vance concluded with Iran.

That agreement, with Pakistan and Qatar acting as mediators, focused on the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, and Iran has made clear that this is conditional on the unqualified end to Israel’s war against Hezbollah and withdrawal from Lebanon.

The U.S. thus negotiated parallel agreements based on two contradictory visions of Lebanon’s place in the Middle East peace puzzle.

Whereas the peace pro