NEED TO KNOW

• Trump says the US-Iran deal can survive even if Israel keeps striking Lebanon
• Israel says Trump's agreement does not bind it and its troops will stay
• Iran says any Israeli forces or strikes in Lebanon violate the deal

WASHINGTON, DC (TDR) — President Trump said the US-Iran memorandum can withstand continued Israeli attacks in Lebanon, even as Israel and Iran publicly described the same document in opposite terms three days before its scheduled signing.

The big picture: The framework promises to halt fighting "on all fronts, including in Lebanon," but Israel was not a party to the talks and rejects that it is bound by them.

Freedom-Loving Beachwear by Red Beach Nation - Save 10% With Code RVM10

• Trump told reporters the deal can survive Israeli operations, saying "it can"
• He criticized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's handling of what he called a "minor war" against Hezbollah
• The draft memorandum published by Bloomberg does not mention Israel at all

Why it matters: The signature scheduled for Friday would formalize a ceasefire that one of the war's central combatants has not agreed to honor.

• Israel has effectively occupied a section of southern Lebanon for more than three months, forcing tens of thousands to evacuate
• Iran's foreign minister says Israeli forces or strikes in Lebanon would breach the agreement
• A collapse on the Lebanon front could unravel the broader 60-day talks before they begin

Driving the news: The three governments aired their disagreement openly this week as envoys prepared for the Switzerland signing.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE THE DUPREE REPORT

• Iranian and Pakistani sources say the deal includes a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah; the US has at times said it does not
• Israeli officials said Monday troops would remain in Lebanon "as long as required"
• Trump suggested Israel would not exist without US support, sharpening his public split with Netanyahu

What they're saying: Named officials across all three governments offered conflicting accounts of what Friday's signature settles.

• Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli Prime Minister — "We will remain in the security zones as long as required in order to defend our country."
• Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israeli National Security Minister — "Trump's agreement does not bind us."
• Abbas Araghchi, Iranian Foreign Minister — "Any military attack by Israel against Lebanon from this point forward, as well as any continued occupation of Lebanese territory, will be regarded by us as a violation of the memorandum of understanding."

Yes, but: Trump's confidence that the deal survives Lebanon cuts against his own leverage. A US official told PBS the deal did not call for an Israeli withdrawal at all, and the administration has at points said the truce never covered Hezbollah, undercutting the "all fronts" language Iran is now invoking.

Between the lines: The deal's drafters deferred the one front a signature cannot bind. Israel signed nothing and says so plainly, which means the "all fronts" promise rests on US pressure rather than any Israeli commitment. Trump is publicly leaning on his closest ally to honor a ceasefire that ally rejects, and Iran is already positioning Lebanon as the tripwire to walk away. The document settles the waterway and the headline; it leaves the shooting war on its hardest front to the goodwill of a party that never sat at the table.

What's next:

• The memorandum is set to be signed Friday in Switzerland, with Pakistan and Qatar attending
• Analysts say keeping the Israel-Lebanon track moving will require sustained US commitment through the 60-day window
• Whether Israel attends the Geneva negotiations remains unclear

If one of the war's main combatants says the deal does not bind it, what exactly gets signed on Friday?

Sources

This report was compiled using reporting from The Hill, PBS NewsHour, ABC News, The Washington Times, Al Jazeera, NBC News, The Times of Israel, and the Council on Foreign Relations

Freedom-Loving Beachwear by Red Beach Nation - Save 10% With Code RVM10