Seventh round of US-mediated Israel-Lebanon talks opens in Rome

A seventh round of United States-mediated talks between Israel and Lebanon has begun in Rome, with the discussions focused on possible pilot zones in southern Lebanon. The aim is to create areas from which Israeli forces would begin withdrawing while the Lebanese army takes control. The three-day diplomatic meeting is taking place as Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon continue.

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The talks are being held under a US-brokered framework linked to earlier ceasefire efforts. According to the supplied material, a June 26 deal set out a sequenced process in which Israeli forces would withdraw from large parts of southern Lebanon in exchange for the disarmament of Hezbollah. That has not yet happened.

The latest round is expected to include high-level political and military representatives from both sides. A Lebanese official said the Lebanese delegation includes former ambassador to the United States Simon Karam and current ambassador Nada Mouawad. The military delegation is being led by Brigadier-General George Rizkallah.

The same official said legal adviser Antoine Sfeir and land-surveying expert Najib Massihi would also take part. Israeli military representatives are also attending, alongside other senior officials, according to the supplied report. The Rome meeting comes against a backdrop of continuing conflict in southern Lebanon and unresolved commitments from earlier ceasefire arrangements.

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The supplied material says Israel has continued to occupy parts of southern Lebanon and has carried out strikes there despite agreeing to a conditional ceasefire in early June. It also says the wider fighting has displaced more than one million people and caused more than 4,000 deaths since hostilities escalated in March. The talks matter because they are tied to the practical implementation of a ceasefire and to the question of who controls territory along the border.

Any agreement on pilot zones would be a step toward testing whether Israeli withdrawal and Lebanese army deployment can be coordinated on the ground. It would also affect the future role of Hezbollah, which is central to the disarmament element of the US-brokered framework. The current round follows earlier diplomatic efforts that have not yet produced a full withdrawal or a lasting ceasefire.

The supplied material says a previous ceasefire in November 2024 was followed by near-daily attacks, with Israel arguing that Hezbollah had violated the arrangement. That history helps explain why the Rome talks are being watched closely by both military and political actors. For Lebanon, the talks involve not only security but also sovereignty and the return of state control to areas still affected by fighting.

For Israel, they are linked to its stated security concerns and its continued military presence in the south. The presence of legal and surveying specialists suggests the discussions may also involve technical questions about borders, terrain and phased deployment. What remains unclear is whether the Rome round can produce a concrete timetable for withdrawal or agreement on the proposed pilot zones.

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It is also not clear how far the two sides are prepared to move on the disarmament issue or on the scope of Lebanese army control. The next developments to watch are any official readouts from the talks, signs of a phased deal, and whether the continuing strikes affect the negotiations.

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