White House says cease-fire proposal in Lebanon was coordinated with Israel

The White House said the 21-day cease-fire proposal between Israel and Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, unveiled Wednesday night, was coordinated with the Israeli government, which later rejected it.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters in a press briefing Thursday that “the statement was indeed coordinated with the Israeli side.”

“I’m just laying out the facts and what we know, and what we want to avoid,” she said. “We do not believe an all-out war is the answer.”

Jean-Pierre added that she “can’t speak” for the Israeli side, but conversations are ongoing.

“Israel was aware of this statement and now, what I can tell you right now, we are having continued discussions that is happening with our teams in New York. … I can assure you these conversations are continuing,” she said.

The Israeli news outlet Haaretz reported that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a close ally of his, Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, were briefed on the proposal earlier this week and expressed initial approval. But Netanyahu later reversed course on a flight to New York after pressure from factions in his government, the outlet reported.

Netanyahu’s office released a statement Thursday expressing opposition to the cease-fire proposal, which was led by the U.S. and France but backed by several allies.

The prime minister landed in the U.S. on Thursday to attend the United Nations General Assembly, which is open for high-level talks until Monday.

The plan aims for a three-week truce between Israel and Hezbollah while a more permanent agreement is worked out along the Blue Line, a boundary between the two countries.

The U.S. released the proposal amid intense escalation between Israel and Hezbollah in the past week, including deadly Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon on Monday that killed more than 500 people.

Washington has pushed for months to reach a diplomatic agreement between both sides to avoid a full-out war but has struggled to quell the tensions. Israel and Hezbollah have been exchanging fire over the border for 11 months in a conflict tied to the ongoing war with Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken told MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” Thursday that if Israel wants to return its about 60,000 displaced residents in the north, “we believe that the best way to get that done is through diplomacy.”

“To get an agreement that would create a secure environment, forces pulling back from the border, people having confidence to go back to their homes,” he added. “Conversely, getting into a full-scale war is not the way to achieve that objective.

“There’s no way in that situation that people are going to be able to go back,” the secretary of state continued, “So, you have much of the world coming together, calling for this 21-day cease-fire, to give us some time, to give us some space, to see if we can get a diplomatic resolution that creates that environment to get people home.”

Alex Gangitano contributed reporting.

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