Trump could get frosty G7 reception amid confusion over Iran ceasefire

Lebanon has emerged as a stumbling block for Donald Trump’s deal with Iran to end the Middle East war, as Israeli politicians criticise the agreement and mixed messages come from the nations involved.

Many of the terms of the agreement, which was signed electronically at the weekend, remain unknown.

The agreement is not an all-inclusive peace deal, but does provide a framework for ongoing negotiations on issues such as the future of Iran’s nuclear program over the next 60 days, while lifting some of the war-time measures which have been imposed, such as the chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz.

On Monday, a White House official claimed the deal’s full details would be made public in the next 48 hours, but shortly afterwards, Mr Trump told reporters after arriving in France for the G7 summit the agreement’s specifics would be released after it was officially signed at a ceremony on Friday. 

Iranian state media is also reporting claims which call into question the US President’s insistence the Strait of Hormuz will be permanently reopened with “no tolls” charged to shipping companies.

It remains unclear how Lebanon features in the ceasefire deal that has been signed, although Iran has previously demanded Israel cease its attacks on its neighbour as part of negotiations.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is due to provide his first official comment from Jerusalem on Monday evening, local time.

The deal is expected to dominate discussion at the three-day G7 summit in the resort town of Évian-les-Bains which got underway on Monday, although Mr Netanyahu has not been invited.

Of specific concern to Israel is that it forces an end to the fighting in Lebanon, where the Israeli military has been targeting the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah since early March.

Fighting eased in southern Lebanon on Monday, hours after the deal was struck, although some artillery strikes were reported. An Israeli drone attack on a car near the village of Kfar Tebnit killed at least one person, according to Lebanon authorities.

No Hezbollah rockets or drones appeared to be launched at Israel, with warning sirens remaining silent.

Israel’s defense minister had declared his country’s forces would not withdraw from territory seized and occupied during Israel’s invasion of Lebanon in March. It’s understood Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon is not a condition of the 60-day ceasefire agreement.

Hezbollah, considered a terrorist organisation under Australian law, praised its Iranian backers in reaching the agreement.

Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun has welcomed the deal and released a statement saying he hoped it would “put a definitive end to the cycle of violence, and establish a phase of stability, security, recovery, and reconstruction”.

On the streets of Beirut, there was cautious optimism that the deal would mean the US had used its influence to stop Israel launching further attacks on Lebanon.

“That’s why Israel is angry. Israel wants [Hezbollah] weakened and submissive, doing whatever Israel wants,” taxi driver Nabil Hanna, 56 told the ABC.

“But now things have changed, America will not accept that.”

He said the war in Lebanon had fuelled an immense humanitarian crisis, which would take a long time to recover from.

Many people in the country’s capital are sceptical about the situation in their country and region, despite the ceasefire.

“We don’t see any light in the tunnel so far,” Ghassan el Nawar, 58, told the ABC. “I doubt in the short term it will affect our situation here in Lebanon.  

“I’m sure the Israelis can violate the agreement. Sometimes they can hit here and there … so God knows what will happen in the future.”

Many world leaders have welcomed the ceasefire agreement.

However, Mr Trump could still face a frosty reception from multiple foreign leaders at the G7 gathering, including France’s Emmanuel Macron, Britain’s Sir Keir Starmer and German’s Friedrich Merz, who have all been critical of the US president’s handling of the war in the Middle East.

Mr Macron has said France and Britain were standing by to lead a mission to de-mine the strait.

It is understood about 25 ships-per-day been getting through the strait, and the US expects that to increase to 40 or 50 pretty quickly then steadily increase to pre-war levels.

A US official on Monday said there would not be tolls imposed on the Strait of Hormuz during the ceasefire deal’s 60-day negotiation period, and that they expected there would be no tolls in the final agreement.

Iranian state media has released fresh details of what the 14-point plan could include, and a suggestion Iran will charge ships to transit through the shipping channel after the initial ceasefire period.

The area around Évian-les-Bains, on the shores of Lake Geneva, is in lockdown as upwards of 15,000 police and soldiers control access to the summit.

Twenty-seven border crossings from Switzerland into France have also been closed for the duration of the conference and there are multiple layers of security and checkpoints surrounding the G7 venue.

Australia has been invited to the summit multiple times, but was not asked to this year’s gathering.

As the conference got underway, the European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said there can be no peace in the Middle East while “Lebanon is in flames”.

The US-Iran deal has been criticised by prominent Israeli politicians, from within the right-wing Netanyahu coalition and opponents of the government.

Far-right national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir insisted Israel was not bound by the agreement and posted on X: “We must not compromise on anything less than the dismantling of Hezbollah.”

Former IDF deputy chief turned politician, Yair Golan said the deal had been made “over Israel’s head” and was evidence of the Prime Minister’s weakness.

Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich suggested in a social media post the agreement was a win for Iran and bad “for the entire free world”.