US envoys head to Switzerland as Israeli strikes on Lebanon threaten Iran talks
Al Jazeera Staff
US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are traveling to Switzerland for postponed talks with Iran, as Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon threaten the diplomatic process. Iran has made a ceasefire in Lebanon a precondition for negotiations, sources say.
US media reported that special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, son-in-law of US President Donald Trump, were en route to Switzerland on Friday, after scheduled talks between the US and Iran were postponed.
Axios cited an unnamed US official saying Witkoff was traveling to the Alpine nation on Friday. Meanwhile, CNN reported the trip comes as Washington and Tehran work to bring technical negotiations—the next step after an initial peace agreement—“back on track.”
CNN also quoted a US official saying Jared Kushner is expected in Switzerland to participate in the talks. Axios said he was already there. Vice President JD Vance had initially planned to travel but postponed the trip, the White House announced Thursday evening.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is expected in Switzerland on Saturday, though the plan could change, according to Axios sources. Sources from one of the mediating countries said Araghchi told some partners that Iran views a ceasefire in Lebanon as a prerequisite for diplomacy and could “determine the success or failure” of US-Iran talks. Another source said Iranian officials want to see a ceasefire implemented before traveling to Switzerland. No new date for the talks has been announced.
While news from Switzerland spread, at least five people were killed in Israeli airstrikes and drone attacks in southern Lebanon, just hours after a ceasefire between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah took effect.
Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency (NNA) reported Saturday that Israeli fighter jets and drones carried out a series of airstrikes across the Nabatieh area overnight and into Saturday morning, destroying residential buildings and homes, while Israeli artillery shelled Nabatieh and its outskirts before dawn.
The attacks came after Israel and Hezbollah declared a new ceasefire in Lebanon and threaten to derail a memorandum of understanding (MoU) aimed at ending the war. Article 1 of the MoU states that ending the war in Lebanon is an inseparable part of a broader ceasefire across all fronts.
Israel and Lebanon held their first direct talks in a series in April, the first time the two countries officially met since 1993. After that meeting and a subsequent round in June, Israel and Lebanon declared a pause in hostilities. However, the talks did not include Hezbollah, hindering any meaningful progress.
After a ceasefire was reached in November 2024, the Lebanese government sought to disarm Hezbollah as part of a US-backed roadmap. The Lebanese government also pushed for an Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon. However, the text of an agreement reached in June called for Hezbollah to withdraw north of the Litani River in southern Lebanon but did not call for a full Israeli withdrawal.
