AMNA NAWAZ: Welcome to the "News Hour."

Mediators are racing to bring the U.S.

and Iran back to the negotiating table amid a standoff over the Strait of Hormuz and a precarious cease-fire.

Historic talks, however, did happen today.

The U.S.

hosted the first face-to-face meeting between Israel and Lebanon in decades to discuss the shared goal of ending the war between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah and Lebanon.

William Brangham begins our coverage.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: The funeral marches seem endless in Beirut.

Red Cross volunteers carried the body of one of their own, 31-year-old Hassan Badawi killed this weekend by an Israeli drone strike.

His family wept.

His Red Cross colleagues embraced.

And then it was back to work, joining other first responders defined bodies under the mountains of rubble that remain from Israel's relentless attacks against what it says are Hezbollah targets.

Many victims were civilians.

That includes the devastating strike last week that Lebanese health officials say killed more than 400 people in a span of just 10 minutes.

Israel claimed hundreds of those killed were Hezbollah militants.

More smoke from strikes clouded the horizon today in Southern Lebanon, as Israel presses ahead with its air campaign and ground invasion, despite the cease-fire in Iran and despite Tehran's demands that Lebanon be included in that pause.

A world away, today in Washington, a historic meeting.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio stood alongside Israeli and Lebanese diplomats, gathering them for the first face-to-face talks between the two countries in more than 30 years.

MARCO RUBIO, U.S.

Secretary of State: This is a historic opportunity.

We understand we're working against decades of history, complexities that have led us to this unique moment.

And the opportunity here, I know you some of you were shouting questions about cease-fire.

This is a lot more than just about that.

This is about bringing a permanent end to 20 or 30 years of Hezbollah's influence.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: Hezbollah was not part of today's talks and the group said it wouldn't abide by any agreement, including renewed demands to disarm.

Lebanon's ambassador reiterated the country's calls for a cease-fire which Israel has so far ruled out.

But following the two-hour talks, Israel's ambassador said there was a commitment toward a common enemy.

YECHIEL LEITER, Israeli Ambassador to the United States: We discovered today that we're on the same side of the equation.

And that's the most positive thing we could have come away with.

We are both united in liberating Lebanon from an occupation power dominated by Iran called Hezbollah.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: Consequences are also mounting for Israel following more than a month of war.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni today said she would suspend a defense cooperation agreement with Israel.

But while the Israelis and Lebanese engaged in talks today, no such talks occurred between Iran and the United States, and the U.S.

Naval blockade of Iranian ports along the critical Strait of Hormuz entered its second day.

The U.S.

military claims no ships made it past them so far as it hopes to pressure Iran's main economic engine, oil exports.

Meanwhile, pressure is mounting for international mediators, namely, Pakistan, to try and arrange a new round of talks while the fragile cease-fire still holds.

For his part, President Trump today told The New York Post he felt talks could be imminent, saying they could be happening over the next two days in Islamabad, Pakistan's capital.

For the "PBS News Hour," I'm William Brangham.