Ambassadors For Peace in Lebanon

 Nadene Goldfoot                                                 

 For the first time since the failure of the May 17 Agreement (1983), Israel and the Lebanese government announced the opening of direct negotiations with the goal of reaching a peace agreement and disarming Hezbollah.

As of the 21st, Israeli forces were currently deployed in a security zone in southern Lebanon extending up to 10 kilometers from the border, from the Mediterranean coast in the west to the foothills of Mount Hermon in the east.

Secretary Marco Rubio, Israeli Ambassador to the United States Yechiel Leiter, and Lebanese Ambassador to the United States Nada Hamadeh Moawad at the Department of State in Washington, D.C., April 14, 2026.

The ambassadors to the U.S. from Lebanon and Israel were scheduled to meet for the second time in Washington on Thursday to continue direct talks.  That's today. 

 

The Lebanese Ambassador to the U.S., Nada Hamadeh Moawad, is in Washington D.C. as of today, April 23, 2026, for scheduled high-level talks. She is attending a second session of direct, U.S.-mediated talks at the State Department with the Israeli ambassador regarding a ceasefire, as reported by The Washington Post and Courthouse News Service. In a video published online in November, the diplomat said she was working to "reaffirm President Aoun’s vision focused on safeguarding Lebanon’s sovereignty, implementing reforms and promoting peace."

• Second Round of Talks: Following a first meeting on April 14, Ambassador Moawad and Israeli counterpart Yechiel Leiter are discussing the extension of a 10-day ceasefire, according to Facebook posts by NBC News and Al Jazeera English.
• Recent Activity: Ambassador Moawad was active earlier this week, accompanying Lebanon's Minister of Public Works and Transport to meetings at the White House, Treasury, and World Bank, notes the Embassy of Lebanon in Washington D.C. on Facebook.
• Context: The discussions are aimed at formalizing a truce between Lebanon and Israel, as confirmed by Instagram posts from Anadolu Agency and 6abc Action News on Facebook.                                
  
                      President of Lebanon, Joseph Aoun

• Lebanon President Joseph Aoun said Wednesday that contacts are ongoing to extend the 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah that went into effect Friday.

  Hamadeh will put forward an extension of the ceasefire during the meeting and ask for an end to ongoing Israeli home demolitions in villages and towns occupied by Israel after the latest war broke out on March 2, Aoun said in comments released by his office.

As of April 2026, the Israeli Ambassador to the United States is Yechiel Leiter. He assumed the position on January 27, 2025, succeeding Michael Herzog. He is an American-born Israeli (born in Scranton, Pennsylvania) who made aliyah to Israel in 1978.  (My goodness;  I made aliyah in 1980.)  He is known as a former settler activist and has been described by critics as a "pro-settler activist" and former soldier. His son, Major (Res.) Moshe Yedidia Leiter, was killed in action in the Gaza Strip in 2023.

Resource:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Israel%E2%80%93Lebanon_peace_talks

israelAM

https://today.lorientlejour.com/article/1503110/who-is-nada-hamadeh-moawad-lebanons-ambassador-to-washington-taking-part-in-israel-talks.html