His criticism was echoed by the mayors of several towns in northern Israel, which has borne the brunt of Hizbollah’s rocket launches over the past year, with David Azoulay, mayor of Metula, calling the proposal “shameful” and “an agreement of surrender . . . to Hizbollah, an arm of Iran”.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday he was ready to implement a ceasefire deal with Lebanon and would respond forcefully to any violation by Hezbollah, declaring Israel would retain "complete military freedom of action".