Israel reportedly used the latest round of U.S.-mediated negotiations with Lebanon to seek information about long-missing Israeli navigator Ron Arad and other Jews who disappeared during Lebanon’s civil war, while Lebanon pressed Israel for details on Lebanese detainees believed to be in Israeli custody, according to Lebanese media reports.

According to the Lebanese newspaper An-Nahar, during the seventh round of talks the Lebanese delegation asked Israel to provide information on the number of Lebanese prisoners being held as well as their condition.

Israeli representatives responded by requesting information about 11 Jews who either disappeared or were killed in Lebanon beginning in the 1980s and called for the return of their remains. The request also included renewed demands for information about Ron Arad, the Israeli Air Force navigator who was captured in 1986 and whose fate remains unknown.

An-Nahar, one of Lebanon’s leading newspapers and a publication known for its opposition to Hezbollah, reported that Israel argued its request was based on provisions in the negotiations that call for efforts to locate and return missing individuals. Lebanese officials reportedly countered that the state lacks the ability to provide the requested information.

Sources quoted by Asharq Al-Awsat said the Israeli delegation “demanded the return of the remains of Lebanese Jews killed during the civil war and information on the fate of Lebanese Jews who disappeared during the Lebanese civil war, particularly in the 1980s,” alongside information on Ron Arad “or the handover of his remains.”

The same sources claimed the Lebanese government “knows nothing about the remains of the Jews in the first place, nor does it know anything about Ron Arad,” and accused Israel of raising the issue to “justify refusing to cooperate on the Lebanese detainees file and also embarrass the Lebanese state, which has no information” on the matter.

Lebanese officials further alleged that Israel was pursuing what they described as a “deliberate diversion policy,” arguing that Jerusalem was attempting to avoid discussions about 34 Lebanese detainees they claim are being held by Israel while diverting attention from alleged Israeli military actions in southern Lebanon, including operations near Lebanese Army positions.

According to Asharq Al-Awsat, 10 of the detainees are Hezbollah terrorists, three were previously imprisoned in Israel, two are nurses who disappeared while accompanying Hezbollah operatives, and the remaining 21 are civilians. The report also cited a list claiming that nine were detained during the conflict that began in March, while another 22 were taken into custody between October 2024 and February 2026.

The Hezbollah-affiliated newspaper Al-Akhbar reported separately that Israel also raised the issue of numerous deceased Jews buried in Jewish cemeteries in Beirut and Sidon. Before the Six-Day War, Lebanon was home to a thriving Jewish community that numbered between 12,000 and 20,000 at its peak, according to Ynet.

Meanwhile, a Lebanese diplomatic source told the Hezbollah-affiliated network Al Mayadeen that no additional round of negotiations between Israel and Lebanon is currently scheduled for next month.

Despite that report, Asharq Al-Awsat said both sides have agreed to continue the negotiations, indicating that discussions are expected to move forward.

{Matzav.com}