A 10-day truce between Israel and Lebanon has just gone into effect, taking Netanyahu by surprise. What we know about the deal

In the hours before it took effect – at midnight – Israel and Hezbollah were still attacking each other on the border with Lebanon.

The ceasefire was announced by President Donald Trump. It is being welcomed by Lebanon's president, while Israel's president, Benjamin Netanyahu, says it represents a “historic” opportunity for peace, according to the BBC.

Netanyahu says Israeli troops will remain in a 10km deep “security zone” in southern Lebanon – which runs counter to Hezbollah's demand to withdraw.

The ceasefire announcement took Israel by surprise

This cease-fire announcement took Israel by surprise – apparently even within the government's security cabinet.

A highly respected Israeli news agency described tonight how Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called a meeting of the security cabinet just five minutes before the ceasefire was announced.

According to leaks from that meeting, ministers were not given the right to vote on the truce.

For many, this is another example of Netanyahu bowing to US President Donald Trump's demands to end the fighting, even when the terms or timing are not what Israel wants. Netanyahu – while presenting the truce as “an opportunity to conclude a historic peace deal with Lebanon” – has also made it clear that he is making few concessions on the ground.

Trump urges Hezbollah to respect ceasefire

US President Donald Trump is urging Hezbollah, the Iran-backed militant group in southern Lebanon, to respect the ceasefire with Israel that has come into effect.

“I hope Hezbollah will act nice and well during this important time,” the president writes on Truth Social. “It will be a GREAT time for them if they do. They need to finally have PEACE!”

An Israeli official told CBS News, the BBC's US partner, that Israel would respond militarily during the ceasefire only to “imminent threats from Hezbollah”.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that a more lasting peace deal would require the disarmament of the Iran-backed group.

The 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah has Lebanese people celebrating in the streets as other locals join a convoy of vehicles to return to their homes in areas of southern Lebanon that Israel has bombed for over a month.

What is known about the agreement

The cease-fire agreement between Israel and Lebanon, announced by US President Trump, is due to take effect in less than 10 minutes at 17:00 EST (that's 22:00 BST and 00:00 in Romania).

What we know:

• The ceasefire is initially set to last 10 days, but the US says it could be extended.

• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says this will create an opportunity for a “historic peace agreement” with Lebanon
• Hezbollah agreed to abide by the ceasefire, while demanding that it include “a complete cessation of attacks on all Lebanese territory” and “no freedom of movement for Israeli forces”.
• Netanyahu says Israeli troops will remain in a 10km deep “security zone” in southern Lebanon – which runs counter to Hezbollah's demand to withdraw.
• The US State Department says that under the terms of the deal, the Lebanese government must “take significant steps” to prevent Hezbollah from attacking Israel.
• It adds that the Lebanese security forces have “sole responsibility” for Lebanon's sovereignty and national defense.

We don't know what will be the next steps. Trump says he has invited the leaders of Israel and Lebanon to the White House, but nothing is confirmed yet.