President Joseph Aoun defended on Thursday negotiations with Israel, saying they were not a betrayal and he would not surrender "a single inch of Lebanon's territory," according to the presidency.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Wednesday that the Israeli army would remain "until further notice" in what it describes as "security zones" in Lebanon, Syria and the Gaza Strip.

Druze leader Walid Jumblat declared in an interview with L'Orient-Le Jour that he "will not be part of a coalition to bring down the framework agreement between Lebanon and Israel."

Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea stressed Thursday that the framework agreement signed between Lebanon and Israel "opens the door to restoring a functioning state and ending the chronic conflict that has drained Lebanon for decades."

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said he is ready to reach a settlement if the other side shows a similar willingness, while describing a proposed framework agreement between Lebanon and Israel as an "agreement of sedition."

In remarks published Thursday by Ad-Diyar newspaper, Berri revealed that he had previously reached an understanding with President Joseph Aoun to demand that any Israeli withdrawal be executed based on administrative districts rather than "pilot zones" and that he was later surprised that the finalized framework agreement ultimately adopted the pilot zones mechanism instead.

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani told Lebanon's president on Thursday that Damascus had no intention of intervening militarily in his country, despite U.S. pressure to do so, according to the Lebanese presidency.

Shaibani, who also invited President Joseph Aoun to Syria, is visiting Beirut, where he met parliament speaker Nabih Berri, a Hezbollah ally, for the first time.

A ceasefire sounds straightforward: Fighting stops. Negotiations ensue. Ordinary citizens get a break from fighting — and some time to rebuild.

That's not what's happening in the volatile Mideast, where ongoing fighting still resembles a war long after ceasefire agreements were announced and President Donald Trump declared victory.

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam on Wednesday defended the framework agreement that Lebanon has signed with Israel, saying that if it gets implemented, it should lead to an Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon.

It would also "allow our displaced people to return to their villages and homes in a safe and dignified manner," Salam told LBCI television.

Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani has discussed with U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner the latest developments in the negotiations with Iran and the current situation in Lebanon.

"President Joseph Aoun denied on Wednesday rumors about his willingness to dismiss Army Commander Rodolphe Haykal and the heads of security agencies, saying these claims are "unfounded."

"Their roles remain vital to maintaining national security and enforcing state sovereignty," Aoun said of Haykal and security agencies' leaders.

Israeli forces opened fire Wednesday on a civilian vehicle in Ibl al-Saqi and bulldozed roads and uprooted trees from Hamoul and Naqoura to Aita al-Shaab in south Lebanon.

Israeli troops also detonated houses overnight in Beit Yahoun, Hadatha, and al-Tiri, shelled the outskirts of Beit Yahoun, and machine-gunned the main road from Kounine to Bint Jbeil.