Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, speaking just before the ceasefire deal had been reached, said it was vital to make an agreement to focus on other war aims.
Those aims include replenishing stocks and fighters and focusing on the threat from Iran and Hamas in Gaza.
And Netanyahu said the deal, which starts early Wednesday, includes the support of the U.S. to fight Hezbollah again if terms of the agreement are not being followed.
"I have said many times, a good deal is a deal that is enforced, and we will enforce it," he said in an address.
The Israeli Cabinet approved the agreement later Tuesday. It includes a requirement that Hezbollah pull back its forces and assets north of the Litani River, removing a threat to northern Israel.
President Biden also confirmed a deal had been reached and said it was designed to be a permanent end to hostilities.
"For nearly 14 months, a deadly conflict raged across the border," Biden said. "Civilians on both sides will soon be able to safely return to their communities."
Israel has decimated Hezbollah already and launched a full ground incursion into Lebanon in September in an effort to return home safely the some 80,000 displaced residents in the north.
The deal was hailed by the U.S., whose envoy, Amos Hochstein, has been working with Lebanon and Israel since the fighting started on Oct. 8, 2023, when Hezbollah began firing over the border in support of its ally Hamas.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said before the announcement that a ceasefire deal "will make a big difference in saving lives and livelihoods in Lebanon and in Israel."
"I also believe that by de-escalating tensions in the region, it can also help us to end the conflict in Gaza," he said at the G7 foreign ministers meeting in Italy.
A senior U.S. official outlined the terms of the deal: At 4 a.m. on Wednesday, all shooting will stop, and Lebanese forces will begin to move south to create a bulwark against Hezbollah.
Israel will later begin a phased withdrawal as Lebanese troops are moved down south.
To enforce a Hezbollah withdrawal north of the Litani River, the agreement includes a monitoring mechanism from France and the U.S. to ensure both compliance and that the Lebanese armed forces are maintaining a hold on the territory.
"My motivation was just seeing the level of destruction, and I think the realization and loss of life, and the realization, I think, on both sides, that the battlefield is not going to be the final answer," the official said.
