Israel has quietly paused its heavy bombardment of Lebanon following what sources describe as a “low-key” instruction from U.S. President Donald Trump to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to NDTV. The move comes amid fears that Israel’s fiercest strikes since Hezbollah entered the Middle East war have endangeringly strained the fragile truce between Washington and Tehran.
More than 300 people were killed on Wednesday, making it Lebanon’s darkest day since the latest round of fighting began in early March. Israel insists that most of the dead were Hezbollah fighters, but graphic footage from Beirut and southern Lebanon shows civilians, women and children among them, caught in the devastating raids.
According to Lebanese officials, Trump personally urged Netanyahu to dial down the military action, warning that any escalation might collapse the Pakistan-mediated peace talks involving Iran and the U.S. “He’s going to low-key it,” Trump told reporters, hinting that cautious diplomacy outweighed further air raids.
Israel has meanwhile signaled its willingness to open direct talks with Lebanon, reportedly instructing ministers to pursue negotiations centered on the disarmament of Hezbollah. However, Beirut has insisted that no discussion can take place until a full ceasefire is declared. One senior Lebanese official told AFP that “a truce must come first—then talks.”
On Friday morning, NDTV’s correspondent Nazir Masoodi reported no new strikes on Beirut despite Israel’s earlier warnings for evacuations in several neighborhoods. U.S. officials later confirmed that Washington plans to host ceasefire consultations with representatives from both Israel and Lebanon next week, though neither government has acknowledged participation publicly.
The fighting has reopened deep scars from decades of tension between Israel and Hezbollah—a conflict marked by fierce outbreaks followed by uneasy periods of calm. Lebanese authorities say more than 1,150 people were wounded in this latest assault. Hezbollah has declared its fighters are in close combat with Israeli troops in southern Lebanon, even as Israel’s army chief, Eyal Zamir, hailed the recent strikes as a “heavy blow” to the militant group’s capabilities.
As calm briefly returns to Beirut’s skies, uncertainty overshadows what comes next—whether faint hopes for peace can survive the echo of bombs.
