ISRAEL will occupy Lebanon indefinitely despite a peace deal struck between the US and Iran, ministers have said.
Shehbaz Sharif, the Pakistani prime minister, whose country has served as a mediator, announced the deal and said it would be officially signed in Switzerland on Friday. He said the pact called for "the immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon".
But Israeli national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and defence minister Israel Katz have both pushed back against the agreed framework, suggesting Israel will continue to occupy Lebanon anyway.
"Trump's agreement is not binding on us," said Ben-Gvir in a statement on social media.
"Israel is not subject to the United States, and we are an independent and sovereign nation.
"My position is clear: We are not partners to this agreement that does not ensure our security, and it does not bind us in any way. We must not compromise on anything less than the dismantling of Hezbollah, we must not withdraw from any territory that our fighters have captured and cleared of terror infrastructure, we must not return to a situation where thousands of terrorists sit on the fences of northern settlements, and certainly we must not remain silent for a moment in the face of fire directed at the State of Israel."
ההסכם של טראמפ אינו מחייב אותנו. ישראל לא כפופה לארצות הברית ואנחנו מדינה עצמאית וריבונית! חובתנו לאזרחי ישראל לחיילי צה״ל ולעם היהודי וחובתנו ההיסטורית לנרדפים ולנרצחים היהודים באלפי שנות גלות, להעניק ביטחון ליהודים בארץ ישראל. בכל פעם שנכנענו ללחץ בינלאומי על חשבון ביטחון…
— איתמר בן גביר (@itamarbengvir) June 15, 2026
Katz added on social media: "Israel will not withdraw from the security zones in Lebanon, Syria, and Gaza.
"The IDF will continue to defend our borders and our citizens from the peak of Mount Hermon, the mountains of Lebanon, the areas of our land in the Samaria region, and most of the territory of Gaza—against the threats posed by jihadist forces and organizations, as a central lesson from the events of October 7."
Meanwhile, Bezalel Smotrich, the finance minister, said the agreement was "bad for Israel and for the entire free world" and warned Israel would "continue the campaign" to bring down the Iranian regime alone.
US president Donald Trump says as part of the agreement, the Strait of Hormuz will be reopened.
He wrote in a post on Truth Social: "Let the oil flow!"
Oil prices have since fallen back sharply. Benchmark Brent crude dropped more than 5% on Monday to just over 82 US dollars a barrel, marking its lowest level for more than three months.
Stock markets also jumped higher in Europe and Asia. London’s FTSE 100 Index rose nearly 100 points soon after opening before settling around 0.6% higher, up 64.74 points at 10536.46, while in Europe the Cac 40 and Germany’s Dax both lifted 1.7%.
Iran's deputy foreign minister, Kazem Gharibabadi, said a more expansive agreement would be negotiated during a 60-day ceasefire period, which would include sanctions relief.
The war began with US and Israeli strikes across Iran on February 28, prompting Iran to attack Israel and US-allied states in the Gulf.
