Israel and Hezbollah have agreed to a ceasefire, an Israeli source confirmed to The Jerusalem Post.
The ceasefire was set to begin at 4 p.m. local time on Friday, a senior US official told Reuters.
“Hezbollah and Israel have agreed to a ceasefire,” the official said on background, adding that negotiators for the US and Qataris 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.”
At a press conference on Friday afternoon, an IDF spokesperson said the IDF will continue operating in Lebanon unless it receives different directives.
"Recent events have made one thing clear: IDF soldiers must stand between Hezbollah and Israeli civilians," he said.
"We will not wait for the next attack to reach our homes. We will continue to remove immediate threats, respond to Hezbollah’s violations, and do whatever is necessary to protect our civilians."
Despite IDF readiness to fight, ceasefire seemingly reached
Earlier on Friday, the United States relayed a message to Iran via mediators assuring that Israel will not continue its attacks against Hezbollah, according to a CNN report.
According to CNN's sources, Israel will not continue attacking Hezbollah for the time being, with the 80 sites targeted during Thursday night and Friday morning being the full response to the recent Hezbollah attack that killed four IDF soldiers.
“Hezbollah violated the ceasefire. Israel has agreed to let it be, which was relayed to the Iranians, and it’s up to Hezbollah to stop,” the US sources told CNN.
Iran demanded guarantees that Israel would not attack Hezbollah before continuing the negotiations with the United States, which were scheduled to continue in Switzerland on Friday but were eventually canceled after the latest round of fighting in Lebanon.
The latest Hezbollah attack killed the commander of the 52nd Battalion, 401st Brigade, Lieutenant-Colonel Dor Gedalia Ben Simhon, aged 32, along with three other soldiers whose names have not been revealed yet.
Netanyahu says IDF will exact 'very heavy price' from Hezbollah
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday that he instructed the IDF to strike at Hezbollah "with full force" in response to four IDF soldiers being killed by Hezbollah on Friday.
"My directive is clear: Israel will not tolerate attacks on our soldiers or our territory, and it will exact a very heavy price from Hezbollah for these attacks," Netanyahu wrote in a post on X/Twitter. "The IDF will act to thwart any threat to our forces and our territory."
He also stated that IDF troops would remain in the security zone in Lebanon "for as long as required to protect the settlements in the north."
While many Israeli politicians demanded attacks against Beirut's Dahiyeh neighborhood, which is one of Hezbollah's main strongholds, the IDF attacks were centered in southern Lebanon and the Bekaa valley, the military confirmed.
Throughout all the strikes, dozens of Hezbollah terrorists were killed, the IDF stated.