The Jewish state killed up to 18 people overnight, according to Beirut though no official ceasefire confirmation has been given by either the IDF or Hezbollah Published 19 Jun, 2026 13:45 | Updated 19 Jun, 2026 22:02
RT composite. © RT
Israel and Hezbollah have agreed to a ceasefire starting on Friday, Reuters has claimed, citing an unnamed US official and “two Hezbollah officials.” However, no official confirmation has been made by either the Israel Defense Forces or the militant group.
According to the US official who spoke to Reuters, negotiators for the US and Qatar worked out the deal with help from Iran. “We understand that after the exchange of fire earlier today, Israel and Hezbollah are now in a ceasefire,” he added.
The American-Iranian memo of understanding signed earlier this week states that the war should be terminated on all fronts, including in Lebanon. However, Israel has continued its strikes on its neighbor, killing at least 18 people only Friday night, the country’s health ministry said earlier.
War without end? How Israel became trapped in its own security doctrine
Earlier today, Lebanese Hezbollah lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah told Reuters that Iran had informed the group that talks with Washington could not continue without the implementation of a comprehensive ceasefire.
He also called on the Lebanese government to reject any direct negotiations with Israel while Israeli attacks on Lebanon continue.
Hezbollah not only functions as a militant group, it is also as a political party and social welfare provider; however, it is at odds with the Lebanese government. In March, Lebanon’s government took the unprecedented step of banning Hezbollah’s military and security activity.
The group is represented in both the government and parliament. The move came hours after it announced it had launched rockets and drones towards Israel to avenge the killing of Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei in US-Israeli attacks.
According to Asharq Al-Awsat sources, the Shiite political alliance is now divided over how to deal with Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam’s government, which took the decision. While one faction, described as hardline, favors changing the government, another believes current political conditions make such a move unrealistic because of parliamentary arithmetic: priority should instead be given to securing an Israeli withdrawal and rebuilding devastated towns.
- 19 June 202621:00 GMTIsraeli artillery fire can be seen lighting up the sky in southern Lebanon on footage obtained by RT.
- 20:46 GMTThe next round of the US-Israeli-Lebanese talks will take place in Washington from June 23-25, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed during his call with Lebanese president Joseph Aoun.
- 20:38 GMTWashington is unable to implement the very first point in the US-Iran MOU, which proves it “lacks the will” to earn Iranians’ trust, Ebrahim Azizi, the head of the Iranian parliament’s national security commission, has said.The U.S. failure to implement the first article of the MoU proves it lacks the will to earn the trust of the Iranian people.
Let it be clear: we remain steadfast.
If this situation continues, the price will be high, beginning with our smart and deterrent response.— ابراهیم عزیزی (@Ebrahimazizi33) June 19, 2026Article One of the agreement states that all sides must terminate all hostilities and ensure the territorial integrity of Lebanon. READ MORE: Trump signs memorandum of understanding with Iran (VIDEO) - 20:27 GMTThe recently signed US-Iran MOU corresponds to the terms that Tehran has been insisting on since the early days of the war, Iranian-American Lego cartoonist Mahdi Hemmat (aka PersiaBoi) has told RT.“Iran didn’t enter this deal out of desperation,” said the cartoonist, some of whose Lego animations went viral online on the frontlines of the US-Iran meme war.“They absorbed heavy pressure, responded strategically with asymmetric tactics, they kept the resistance axis alive and they demonstrated real control over the Strait of Hormuz.”
- 20:03 GMTUS and Israeli interests are not always aligned, US Vice President J.D. Vance has said.“People will say that America’s interests are always aligned with Israel’s interests. It’s just not true,” he said in an interview with American conservative commentator Allie Beth Stuckey.“I think is that American leaders have to be very careful that when we pursue something, we’re doing it for America’s best interest and not for any other country’s best interest.”
- 19:53 GMTIsraeli President Benjamin Netanyahu has to be kept a little bit “sane,” US President Donald Trump has told Axios in an interview.He said that his relationship with Netanyahu was “good,” but stressed that “we have to keep him a little bit… sane.”Trump also claimed that he could keep Israel from attacking Lebanon.“They have a lot of respect for me, and they do as I say.”
- 19:42 GMTIranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei “has a certain braveness,” US President Donald Trump has told Axios.“I killed the Ayatollah,” he said, referring to the February 28 assassination of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.“And I sadly hurt the other Ayatollah, who’s… I did not meet him, I did not speak to him, but… he’s got a certain braveness,” Trump said, adding that the Iranian leader was “badly injured” during the war.Trump on Mojtaba Khamenei:
I killed the Ayatollah, and I sadly hurt the other Ayatollah.
I did not meet him. I did not speak to him, but people were speaking of him.
But he’s got a certain braveness because he was badly injured.
Source: Axios pic.twitter.com/3WkdnPxam2
