Lebanon demanded in its response to the U.S. paper that Israel “actually commit to the ceasefire and withdraw from the areas it is still occupying, in return for the start of discussions with Hezbollah on the issue of monopolizing arms in the hands of the state,” sources concerned with the negotiations said.

Hezbollah political bureau member Mahmoud Qmati called Friday for unity in Lebanon amid ongoing domestic and international pressure for Hezbollah to disarm after a bruising war with Israel.

"We are ready for dialogue about a defense strategy," Qmati said, adding that only national unity could help Lebanon and warning that divisions among the Lebanese people would only serve Israel.

U.S. envoy Tom Barrack has reminded that during his latest visit to Beirut, he stated that Hezbollah is “an issue that must be resolved by the Lebanese themselves,” reaffirming a “long-standing position of the United States -- that Hezbollah represents a challenge which only the Lebanese government can address.”

An Israeli drone strike on Friday targeted a Renault Rapid vehicle in the southern town of Baraashit, killing one person and wounding another, the Health Ministry said.

The Israeli army identified the slain man as Ali Mohammad Hassan Qassan, claiming that he was "the head of Hezbollah's manpower for the Bint Jbeil sector."

U.S. envoy Thomas Barrack will reportedly discuss Lebanese proposals with Israeli officials in Paris where he is holding talks with Syrian and Israeli officials on de-escalating sectarian violence in Syria, Lebanese newspaper al-Binaa said.

Barrack was visiting Lebanon before heading to Paris amid ongoing domestic and international pressure for Hezbollah to disarm after a bruising war with Israel.

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam held talks Thursday in Paris with French President Emmanuel Macron after which he thanked France for "its continued support for Lebanon and its security, sovereignty and prosperity."

"I return to Beirut reassured by French President Emmanuel Macron's commitment to assisting Lebanon, renewing UNIFIL's mandate, and strengthening our bilateral relations, particularly in the areas of security, economy, education and culture," Salam added, in a post on the X platform.

One of France's longest-held inmates, the pro-Palestinian Lebanese militant Georges Ibrahim Abdallah, arrived in Beirut on Friday, having been released from prison after more than 40 years behind bars for the alleged killings of two diplomats.

A wave of Israeli airstrikes targeted the Iqlim al-Tuffah heights and the area between Ansar and al-Zrariyeh in south Lebanon on Thursday evening, with the Israeli army claiming that the strikes hit "Hezbollah military sites, including arms depots and a rocket launchpad."

The violent strikes, which have become frequent in recent months, came a day after U.S. envoy Tom Barrack departed Lebanon after a three-day visit in which he discussed the thorny issue of Hezbollah's disarmament amid Israel's continued occupation of five hills in south Lebanon and its daily assassinations against suspected Hezbollah operatives.

Aircraft from Lebanon, Jordan, Spain and Israel were on their way Thursday to help battle a huge wildfire in Cyprus that has claimed the lives of two people. Police were investigating reports that arsonists were to blame.

The flames have scorched more than 120 square kilometers (46 square miles) of forested hillsides in one of the worst such blazes in recent memory.

The U.S. paper delivered to Lebanon by U.S. envoy Tom Barrack calls for a two-stage solution for Hezbollah’s arms, a media report said.