Round 4 Lebanon-Israel Peace Talks Open at US State Department

Round 4 of Lebanon-Israel peace talks opened at the US State Department in Washington, D.C. on June 2, 2026. Secretary of State Marco Rubio presided with US Ambassador Michel Issa. The Lebanese delegation and Israeli delegation (led by Ambassador Yechiel Leiter) met to negotiate a comprehensive ceasefire framework. Hezbollah was entirely excluded from the talks. The central agenda: Israeli army withdrawal from southern Lebanon, Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) deployment as 'exclusive security authority,' weapons restrictions to LAF only in designated pilot zones, and declaration of Hezbollah as an enemy of Lebanon. Al Jazeera reported Lebanon was hoping the talks would halt a feared deeper Israeli invasion following the Beaufort Castle capture. 35 people were killed in Israeli strikes across Lebanon on June 2 despite the negotiations.