A 'deconfliction cell' announced on Monday is intended to strengthen the supposed ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon. The mechanism is designed to provide a way for the parties to communicate and prevent isolated incidents from spiraling into more intense violence.

This is of particular interest to the United States, which has backed the mechanism, and mediators, because Lebanon is arguably the most likely issue to bring down the US-Iran memorandum of understanding, risking a return to all-out war in the region.

Iran has repeatedly made it clear that it will not allow Israel to continue to attack Lebanon without repercussions. Israel has refused to accept any attempt to restrain its ability to conduct strikes in Lebanon or withdraw from the territory it occupies.

The US is attempting to bridge these two positions, signaling dissatisfaction with Israeli attacks on Lebanon while insisting on the disarmament of the pro-Iranian Hezbollah group. However, the push to disarm Hezbollah has been complicated by Iran's ability to impact the global economy.

US Vice President JD Vance has backed the deconfliction cell, arguing that the scale of attacks has decreased. 'Sometimes these ceasefires just mean you're shooting a little bit less,' he said.

Direct negotiations between Lebanon and Israel continue in Washington, although Hezbollah opposes them. A Hezbollah statement claimed the Lebanese delegation was sent only to rubber-stamp US demands.

Experts say the mechanism could prevent a total collapse of the ceasefire, but the issue of Hezbollah's disarmament remains unresolved. Analysts believe full disarmament of the group is unlikely.

Source: www.aljazeera.com