Why Was Gina Carano Fired from “The Mandalorian”? Inside Her Controversies

Gina Carano was fired from The Mandalorian in 2021 after backlash over controversial social media posts

NEED TO KNOW

• Carano sued Disney for wrongful termination and settled the lawsuit in August 2025 for an undisclosed amount

• Since her firing, Carano returned to mixed martial arts for a May 2026 fight against Ronda Rousey

Gina Caranostarred as Cara Dune in the first two seasons ofThe Mandalorianbefore shewas fired in 2021.

TheDeadpoolactress was let go from the Disney+ series after she made headlinesfor controversial social media posts. The tweets — which included a message seemingly comparing how conservatives were being treated during the COVID-19 pandemic to how Jewish people were treated by the Nazis during the Holocaust — caused major backlash, and she was fired in February 2021.

Three years later, Carano sued the Walt Disney Company for wrongful termination and discrimination. In August 2025, both Disney and Carano confirmed that they hadsettled the lawsuitfor an undisclosed amount of money.

In the years since her firing, Carano has pivoted her career and returned to pursuing mixed martial arts — which she initially found success in in the mid to late 2000s. Carano returned to the ring for the first time in 17 years to take onRonda RouseyinNetflix’s first-ever live MMAevent from Intuit Dome in Los Angeles.

Here's everything to know about Gina Carano's firing fromThe Mandalorianand why she sued the Walt Disney Company.

Why was Gina Carano fired fromThe Mandalorian?

Carano played Cara for the first two seasons ofThe Mandalorian, but she was fired from theStar Warsspinoff in February 2021. Her firing came shortly after she faced controversy for posts on social media.

The actress reposted a statement on her Instagram Stories in February 2021, in which a person was comparing the treatment of conservatives in the U.S. during the pandemic to the treatment of Jewish people in Nazi Germany, perEntertainment Weekly.

Although Carano's message about conservatives was the "final straw" for Disney, she also faced controversy for other actions on social media.

In September 2020, Carano changed her bio on X to read "beep/bop/boop," which some people interpreted to mean that she was mocking the pronouns that social media users include in their profiles. However, she later claimed onXthat "beep/bop/boop has zero to do with mocking trans people" and insinuated that she was referring to theStar Warscharacter R2-D2.

"They're mad cuz I won't put pronouns in my bio to show my support for trans lives. After months of harassing me in every way. I decided to put 3 VERY controversial words in my bio.. beep/bop/boop I'm not against trans lives at all," sheposted on Xat the time.

In addition, she later explained that her costarPedro Pascalhelped her "understand why people were putting them in their bios."

"I didn't know before but I do now. I won't be putting them in my bio but good for all you who choose to," she wrote on X. "I stand against bullying, especially the most vulnerable & freedom to choose."

Social media sleuths continued digging into Carano's social media accounts and also found old messages where she was spreadingcontroversial narratives about COVID-19and allegedvoter fraud.

All the former sentiments culminated with her February 2021 social media post, and "#FireGinaCarano" trended on X. Later that month, a rep for LucasFilm told PEOPLE in a statement, "Gina Carano is not currently employed by Lucasfilm and there are no plans for her to be in the future."

At the time, then-Disney CEO Bob Chapek said Disney fired Carano because hercomments didn't align with the company's values. He explained that Disney is not "left-leaning or right-leaning" but instead stands for "values that are universal: values of respect, values of decency, values of integrity and values of inclusion," perThe Hollywood Reporter.

LucasFilm also explained the firing by saying in a statement, "Her social media posts denigrating people based on their cultural and religious identities are abhorrent and unacceptable.”

How didThe Mandalorianexplain Carano’s absence?

Since Carano was axed fromThe Mandalorianafter the second season, many fans wondered how theDisney+ show was going to explain her absence. Carano's character, Cara, was a bounty hunter who was close with Pascal's Din Djarin (a.k.a. the Mandalorian).

During the season 3 premiere in March 2023, viewers finally learned the fate of Cara. The characters Din and High Magistrate Greef Karga (Carl Weathers) had a conversation in which Karga asked Din if he wanted to replace Cara as a marshal in Nevarro, because she had been promoted to the Special Forces of the New Republic.

The show's executive producer, Rick Famuyiwa, toldDeadlinethat he and the other showrunners had carefully considered how to handle Cara's absence.

"Cara was a big part and continues as a character to be part of the world," Famuyiwa toldDeadlinein February 2023. "It had to be addressed in the creative, and [executive producer and showrunnerJon Favreau] took the time to think about that."

Why did Carano sue the Walt Disney Company?

Nearly three years after she was fired, Carano sued the Walt Disney Company and LucasFilm for allegedly firing her as a result of her conservative messages. She claimed the firing caused her emotional damage and that she lost millions of dollars in income from the show.

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At the time of the 2024 lawsuit, she was asking for LucasFilm to either rehire her or pay her at least $75,000.

“A short time ago in a galaxy not so far away, Defendants made it clear that only one orthodoxy in thought, speech, or action was acceptable in their empire, and that those who dared to question or failed to fully comply would not be tolerated,” the lawsuit read, perNBC News. “And so it was with Carano.”

Carano later addressed the suit and thanked X ownerElon Muskfor helping her finance the lawsuit and "giving me an opportunity to bring my case to light."

“The truth is I was being hunted down from everything I posted to every post I liked because I was not in line with the acceptable narrative of the time,” Carano claimed onXat the time. “My words were consistently twisted to demonize & dehumanize me as an alt right wing extremist.”

She alleged in another message onX, "Disney has confirmed what has been known all along, they will fire you if you say anything they disagree with, even if they have to MISREPRESENT, MALIGN, and MISCHARACTERIZE you to do it.  They are now on record letting everyone who works for them know that Disney will take any chance they get to control what you say, what you think or they will attempt to destroy your career."

Disney argued in their subsequent motion requesting a dismissal that theyhad a First Amendment right to fire Carano, because they have "a constitutional right not to associate its artistic expression with Carano's speech." The company also maintained that "a state cannot force an employer engaged in speech to speak through an employee whose own views or public profile could compromise the employer’s own message."

Disney further claimed that they fired Carano because of her social media posts "blaming pandemic-related closure orders and vaccine mandates for causing widespread suicides and murders, attacking the legitimacy of the 2020 Presidential election, and mocking people who identify their pronouns to show support for transgender rights."

However, Disney's "final straw" was her message about Jewish people, in which they said she "publicly trivialize[d] the Holocaust by comparing criticism of political conservatives to the annihilation of millions of Jewish people."

How was Gina Carano's lawsuit resolved?

Over one year after Carano filed her wrongful termination lawsuit, she reached a settlement with LucasFilm and the Walt Disney Company in August 2025.

"The Walt Disney Company and Lucasfilm are pleased to announce that we have reached an agreement with Gina Carano to resolve the issues in her pending lawsuit against the companies," a spokesperson for LucasFilm told PEOPLE in a statement on Aug. 7.

"Ms. Carano was always well respected by her directors, co-stars, and staff, and she worked hard to perfect her craft while treating her colleagues with kindness and respect," the statement continued. "With this lawsuit concluded, we look forward to identifying opportunities to work together with Ms. Carano in the near future."

Later that same day, Carano wrote onXthat she was "excited" the lawsuit had come to an end and that she was "smiling" with the outcome.

"I have come to an agreement with Disney/Lucasfilm which I believe is the best outcome for all parties involved. I hope this brings some healing to the force," she wrote. "I want to extend my deepest most heartfelt gratitude to Elon Musk, a man I've never met, who did this Good Samaritan deed for me in funding my lawsuit."

She also thanked her lawyers, God and all her followers who shared their "unrelenting support throughout my life and career."

"I am excited to flip the page and move onto the next chapter," she concluded. "My desires remain in the arts, which is where I hope you will join me. Yes, I’m smiling."

What has Gina Carano done since her firing?

Shortly after she was fired fromThe Mandalorian, Carano announced that she was working withBen Shapiro's conservative website, The Daily Wire, tostar in and produce a movie.

"The Daily Wireis helping make one of my dreams—to develop and produce my own film—come true," Carano toldDeadlinein February 2021. "I cried out and my prayer was answered. I am sending out a direct message of hope to everyone living in fear of cancellation by the totalitarian mob."

"I have only just begun using my voice which is now freer than ever before and I hope it inspires others to do the same," she added. "They can't cancel us if we don't let them."

In 2022,Terror on the Prairiewas releasedand starred Carano as a veteran's wife fighting against a group of outlaws in Montana after the Civil War. Later that year, she also starred in the fictional retelling of formerPresident Joe Biden's sonHunter Bidenin the film,My Son Hunter.

As for her personal life, Carano is in a long-term relationship with former Muay Thai fighter and kickboxer, Kevin "The Soul Assassin" Ross.

Sheannouncedin March 2026 that she and Ross got married and called it "the best thing I've ever done."

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Why Was Gina Carano Fired from “The Mandalorian”? Inside Her Controversies

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How Often Do Fans Reference “The” “Prince of Egypt” to Brian Stokes Mitchell? The Actor Says ... (Exclusive)

Brian Stokes Mitchell told PEOPLE in an exclusive interview that fans bring up The Prince of Egypt to him "all the time"

NEED TO KNOW

• The actor provides the singing voice for Jethro's performance of "Through Heaven's Eyes" in the 1998 animated film

• "I'm happy that it's still going and people still love the song," Stokes Mitchell said

Nearly three decades later, fans still love bringing upThe Prince of EgypttoBrian Stokes Mitchell.

The actor, 68, provides the singing voice for Jethro in the animated retelling of the biblical Book of Exodus. His song, "Through Heaven's Eyes," is a fan-favorite from the 1998 film's soundtrack, and Stokes Mitchell said he gets references about it "all the time."

"As a matter of fact, when they tested that movie originally, they said that song was the one that everybody responded to as well," Stokes Mitchell told PEOPLE in an exclusive interview as he attended the opening night of Broadway'sJoe Turner's Come and Gonein April.

"So I was really happy about that, and I'm happy that it's still going and people still love the song," added the actor.

The Prince of Egyptfollows the journey of Moses, voiced byVal Kilmer.

Other stars who lent their vocal talents to the Dreamworks project includeRalph Fiennes,Michelle Pfeiffer,Sandra Bullock,Jeff Goldblum,Danny Glover,Patrick Stewart,Helen Mirren,Steve MartinandMartin Short, among others.

The film won an Oscar in the Best Original Song category for "When You Believe," penned byStephen Schwartz. (Whitney HoustonandMariah Careyreleased a popular version for the film's end credits.)

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Stokes Mitchell provides the singing voice for Glover's character in the 1998 movie.

Stokes Mitchell has starred in a number of Broadway shows throughout his career, including 1998'sRagtime, and 2002'sMan of La Mancha— plus 1999'sKiss Me, Kate, which earned him a Tony award.

The actor, who previously starred in August Wilson's King Hedley II in 2001, told PEOPLE he wants his next career move to be a similar one.

"I'd love to do another August Wilson play, actually, because he's the American Shakespeare. I just love him," Stokes Mitchell said. "I love his words, I love his rhythms, and I love the jazz and the music in his words."

Stokes Mitchell serves as a co-producer for the latest iteration ofJoe Turner’s Come and Gone, written by Wilson. The production, directed byDebbie Allen, starsTaraji P. Henson, making her Broadway debut, alongsideCedric The Entertainer.

Tickets to seeJoe Turner’s Come and Gonecan be purchasedhere. The show is expected to run through July 26 at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre.

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SpaceX launches cargo ship to International Space Station

SpaceX launched an unpiloted Dragon cargo ship Friday loaded with 6,500 pounds of supplies and equipment bound for the International Space Station, including nearly a ton of research gear, samples and other material for some 50 different science investigations.

Running three days late because of bad weather, the Dragon's Falcon 9 booster roared to life at 6:05 p.m. ET, blasting off from pad 40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and arcing away to the northeast in line with the station's orbit.

Two and a half minutes after liftoff, the rocket's first stage, making its sixth flight, fell away and flew itself back to an on-target touchdown on a landing pad near the launch gantry. The second stage continued the climb to orbit, releasing the Cargo Dragon to fly on its own nine minutes and 20 seconds after launch.

It was SpaceX's 638th Falcon 9 launch since the rocket's debut in 2010, the company's 56th such flight so far this year and its 611th successful booster recovery.

"This will be the first Cargo Dragon spacecraft to head to the station for a sixth time, so a great milestone there," said Bill Spetch, ISS operations integration manager at the Johnson Space Center. "We're sending over 6,000 pounds of hardware, supplies, science experiments and more to our Expedition 74 crew.

"This mission includes everything from water purification hardware to research that helps us better understand space weather," Spetch said.

If all goes well, the Cargo Dragon will complete an automated rendezvous with the station early Sunday, moving in for docking at the front end of the forward Harmony module around 7 a.m.

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Once hatches are opened, the spacecraft will be unloaded by Crew 12 commander Jessica Meir and her three crewmates, pilot Jack Hathaway, European Space Agency astronaut Sophie Adenot and cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev.

Also on board the station as part of the seven-member Expedition 74 crew: Soyuz MS-28/74S commander Sergey Kud-Sverchkov, fellow cosmonaut Sergey Mikaev and NASA astronaut Chris Williams.

The Cargo Dragon is delivering more than 3 tons of equipment and supplies, including 1,363 pounds of crew clothing, food and other essentials; more than 1,000 pounds of vehicle hardware, 282 pounds of spacewalk components, 186 pounds of computer gear and 1,834 pounds of research equipment and samples.

"The ISS has enabled more than 4,000 different science experiments and technology demonstrations in its 25 years on orbit," said Liz Warren, deputy chief scientist for the space station program. "And that represents the work of over 5,000 researchers from 110 countries around the world.

"The International Space Station is a truly global endeavor. It serves both as a proving ground for scientific breakthroughs and as a critical stepping stone to help enable the Artemis program, lunar exploration and future Mars missions," Warren said.

The next major milestone for the space station program comes in July. Soyuz MS-29 commander Pyotr Dubrov, fellow cosmonaut Anna Kikina and NASA astronaut Anil Menon are scheduled to blast off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on July 14. They will replace Kud-Sverchkov and his two Soyuz MS-28 crewmates.

Launch of a Russian Progress cargo ship is expected in early September, followed by the launch of NASA's Crew 13 — Jessica Watkins, Luke Delaney, Canadian astronaut Joshua Kutryk and cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov — aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule on Sept. 12. They will replace Crew 12.

Three more cargo flights are expected before the end of the year, with crew rotation flights resuming in early 2027.

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SpaceX launches cargo ship to International Space Station

SpaceX launched an unpiloted Dragon cargo ship Friday loaded with 6,500 pounds of supplies and equipment bound for the International Sp...

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A 'Yellowstone' memento survives 'Dutton Ranch' despite fire, deaths

Warning: This article contains spoilers from Episode 1 of "Dutton Ranch," now streaming on Paramount+.

Beth Duttonis forced to make the most excruciating decision inEpisode 1 of "Dutton Ranch"— what to save from the family home as a devastating fire roars over the Montana countryside.

The impossible call is instant as Beth (Kelly Reilly) and her adopted son Carter (Finn Little) have minutes to clear out of the Montana ranch they've lived peacefully in since leaving the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch.

"Ninety seconds, grab what you can," Beth yells to Carter as she grabs legal documents, while Rip (Cole Hauser) rides into the flames.

Rip and BethHead to Texas in ‘Yellowstone’ spinoff, ‘Dutton Ranch.’ Who Rip has killed

The first items Beth grabs include a black-and-white photograph of herself as a girl standing next to her young father, John Dutton (played byJosh Lucasin "Yellowstone" flashbacks). Next, Beth grabs her father's hat, perched on a stand next to the photograph.

It's not surprising that she would gravitate towards John's items. After all, Beth was always close to her father (Kevin Costnerplays the adult version of John in "Yellowstone") andmourns him after his Season 5 death.She even mentions him in the"Dutton Ranch" trailer,telling Rip, "I miss him."

And holding onto the memories of her character's late father was equally important to Reilly.

"It's grab what's important," Reilly, 48, tells USA TODAY. "These items are symbolic to [Beth] and her family's history."

"It was very important to me that Beth grabs her father's hat and a photograph of her father," she adds. "And she grabs a knife."

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The significance behind a Dutton heirloom - Elsa Dutton's knife

The knife, taken from the same table as the photo and hat, has huge Dutton family significance, as it's the knife carried by ancestorElsa Dutton (Isabel May)in "1883."  The gift from Elsa's Comanche husbandSam (Martin Sensmeier)has emerged as a symbol of Dutton fortitude and resilience.

While Elsa (and nearly everyone else) was killed in "1883," her younger brotherSpencer Dutton (Brandon Sklenar)carried the knife, as a tribute to the sister he never met, in the follow-up series"1923."

The knife stayed in the Dutton family through "Yellowstone," and was particularly useful when Beth battled brotherJamie (Wes Bentley)in the series' stunning finale. As Rip held him,Beth plunged the knife into her dastardly brother, who had orchestrated their father's death, to finish Jamie off once and for all.

The killing also allowed Beth to fulfill the promise that her face would be the last thing Jamie ever saw.

"It was the knife that maybe ultimately saw the end of Jamie," says Reilly. "So it's almost like a murder heirloom that she feels sentimental about."

The fire is the reason the Rip and Beth move to Texas

The fire wreaks destruction and is ultimately the reasonBeth and Rip move to Texas.It's an entirely new beginning.

"We had to pluck these characters off a world they knew into a new one to start again and grow them in a different direction," Reilly says.

Even in sweltering Texas, they still have key mementos from their "Yellowstone" life in Montana.

"It's been a big shift. Montana was the biggest character of [Yellowstone]," Reilly says. "So now we have a new character in Texas. We're sizing it up, and it's sizing us up as well."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:How 'Yellowstone' star saving knife impacts 'Dutton Ranch' world

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A 'Yellowstone' memento survives 'Dutton Ranch' despite fire, deaths

Warning: This article contains spoilers from Episode 1 of "Dutton Ranch," now streaming on Paramount+. Beth Duttonis for...

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“Off Campus”' Mika Abdalla Breaks Down That 'Heated' Finale Cliffhanger and Teases Season 2 (Exclusive)

Warning: This story contains spoilers for the season 1 finale ofOff Campus.

NEED TO KNOW

• Season 1 of Off Campus leaves off with a major cliffhanger involving Allie (Mika Abdalla) and Dean (Stephen Kalyn)

• Abdalla breaks down what's to come for Allie after that twist and teases season 2 as she reveals she's received the first two scripts: "It's all very real"

• Off Campus is now streaming on Prime Video

There's a bit of a mess on Allie Hayes's hands at the end ofOff Campusseason 1.

After getting involved with Dean (Stephen Kalyn) — Allie and Dean are the subject of the third book inElle Kennedy's series,The Score, and season 1 of the Prime Video show adapted the first book,The Deal— after her breakup with Sean (Riley Davis), Allie started to panic about falling back into old patterns. In the hopes of slowing things down between her and Dean, she suggested they both sleep with other people, and then she slept with the mysterious Carter St. James (Charlie Evans), whom she'd previously kissed, after running into him on campus.

In the final moments of season 1, Carter walked into Malone's and a nightmare unfolded for Allie. Dean put the pieces together that she had slept with Carter, just after he revealed that he didn't want to see other people, and Carter St. James's true identity was revealed: he's actually Hunter Davenport, the protagonist of Kennedy'sThe Play, a book in herOff Campusspinoff series,Briar U.

"We were all surprised by it,"Mika Abdalla, who plays Allie, tells PEOPLE of the twist. "I think it's really great. "It's really fun to throw someone else into the mix for Allie, just fresh out of her relationship, freaking out about this relationship [with Dean]."

"It's nice to pump the brakes a little bit," Abdalla, 26, says. "I'm excited to see what goes on from there, because that's a pretty heated way to end the season."

She reveals the season was originally "supposed to end differently, and then we had to change that, for reasons that will be revealed later," and the Hunter twist was instead introduced.

Hunter's arrival in the series was "like the freaking nuclear codes," Abdalla says. "We needed to not talk about that. No one was allowed to know who that man was, which was hilarious." The cast was explicitly told not to "follow" Evans on social media or otherwise engage with him to avoid spoiling his arrival. "We weren't allowed to do a freaking thing with that man. They kept it locked up."

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Showrunner Louisa Levy tells PEOPLE that the decision to bring Hunter into the fold "allowed us to tee up potential future seasons that we might be able to explore, and also tee up a little bit of Dean's backstory that we might be able to get into in future seasons as well."

As she points out, Hunter is a character that appears inThe Score,Dean and Allie's book, "just in a small way," so she and the writers found it a "fun opportunity" to "pull from the later books and use those characters to build out" the world on the college campus. "I have no idea how fans are going to react to it, but I'm very excited to see."

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Off Campuswas renewed forseason 2before season 1 premiered, but Prime Video has not yet confirmed which couple it'll follow. On her character's behalf, Abdalla says she is "not excited" about the next installment, as she anticipates some major challenges for Allie. "I am excited about it as an actor," she says. "I am excited for the deep emotional turmoil that Allie is going through, because I think that'll be a lot of fun [to play], and that's not really something I got to play around with too, too much this season."

"I am excited to see the inner workings of her. It's really fun to play such a vibrant, larger-than-life character, who also has these extremely deep feelings about herself and the world around her. It's such a balance," Abdalla continues. "I'm excited to do the puzzle of Allie."

Abdalla has received scripts for the first two episodes of season 2, she confirms, which is "very exciting," and the cast returns to Vancouver to start filming shortly. "It's all very real," she says of the next installment.

Off Campusseason 1 is now streaming on Prime Video.

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Ashley Judd, 58, Throws a Party for Her ‘Inner 12-Year-Old’: ‘There Was No Parent Protecting That Little Girl’

Ashley Judd puts a nostalgic twist on her 58th birthday

NEED TO KNOW

• The Emmy-nominated actress, activist and New York Times bestselling author explained why she chose to celebrate her inner child

• “We backfilled what was always missing and no longer is, thanks to vulnerable imagination,” she said

Ashley Juddis celebrating her inner child after turning another year older.

On Tuesday, May 12, the Emmy-nominated actress shared a recap on social media showing her followers, friends and family how she spent her 58th birthday on April 19.

“My inner 12-year-old was ready to receive love, care, attunement, delight, protection, and provision,” theDouble Jeopardystar captioned theInstagram carousel. She also referenced her birthday the year prior when she honored her “inner nine-year-old.”

Judd sat in a chair outdoors, smiling beside a cake with brown and yellow icing, in the first photo. Colorful candles with the number “12” were placed atop the celebratory dessert.

“Have you ever considered, from your adult perspective, restaging for your sweet inner child an experience she either never had at all?” she asked. “Or an experience that did not unfold with the safety and attention it should have?”

The actress, the daughter ofNaomi Juddand Michael Ciminella, confessed that the tradition is something that she deeply enjoys.

“Many of us grew up with unmet needs,” Judd wrote. “Today, as adults, we can listen carefully to those missings, identify what happened that should not have happened — and, crucially, what did not happen that should have happened — supplying that, now, with love and humor to ourselves.”

While theKiss the Girlsactress remembered “loving some elements” of her time in the sixth grade, she claimed not to “remember any of my birthdays growing up.”

Another one of Judd's favorite memories as a child was learning to square dance in P.E. Unfortunately, she said the positive experiences didn't carry over into her home life.

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“There was no parent (or adult) supporting, nurturing, guiding and reinforcing my learning, delighting in, or protecting that little girl,” Judd wrote.

Judd has discussed her childhood in the past, including in her 2011 memoirAll That Is Bitter and Sweet. During a2024 White House event for the National Strategy for Suicide Prevention, Judd said her early experiences brought an "onset of childhood depression," and the "feeling of not wanting to be here." However, she has healed with the help of treatment and "had a different outcome than my mother." Naomidied by suicide in April 2022at 76.

TheSomeone Like Youactress said “sensitive, playful people” helped her to redo her 12th birthday this past weekend.

“We backfilled what was always missing and no longer is, thanks to vulnerable imagination,” she wrote.

Their day also included laughing, frolicking and square dancing, as documented in her caption as well as within the content of her Instagram carousel.

Judd continued to recap details in her comment section, sharing that the birthday party also included nostalgic elements such as “vintage Goody hairbrushes to sing unabashedly into the mirror to Casey Kasem Top 40 hits.”

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However, her “carefully vetted” playlist did remove “My Sharona,” which she described as having “gross” lyrics.

“Children need to be seen, witnessed, validated, encouraged, protected, guided, and supported,” she continued, later adding, “Today, it is safe for me to feel the innocence of the childhood I always deserved.”

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New round of Lebanon-Israel talks kicks off as fighting between Israel and Hezbollah continues

BEIRUT (AP) — A third round ofdirect talksbetween Israel and Lebanon kicked off in Washington Thursday, days before the expiration of a truce that reduced but did not stop the fighting between Israel and theLebanese militant group Hezbollah.

The top photos of the day by AP's photojournalists

Lebanese officials are hoping that the two-day negotiations will yield a new ceasefire deal and pave the way for tackling a series of thorny issues, including the withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon and the disarmament of Hezbollah.

A U.S. State Department official described the full day of discussions on Thursday as “productive and positive” and said the U.S. looks forward to day two on Friday. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the closed-door session and did not offer additional details.

The Trump administration has beenpushing for a breakthroughbetween the two neighbors that have been officially in a state of war since Israel was created in 1948.

Hezbollah, however, is not part of those talks and has been vocally opposed to Lebanon engaging in direct negotiations with Israel.

Israel and the Iranian-backed militant group have continued to trade near-constant fire across the border despite aU.S.-brokered ceasefireon April 17. Initially a 10-day truce, it was then extended for another three weeks.

Talks move to a higher level

U.S. Secretary of StateMarco Rubio, who attended the first Israel-Lebanon meetings in Washington in April, was with President Donald Trump on a visit to China and did not attend Thursday's session.

The current round of talks represents a step toward more serious negotiations, with higher-level envoys from Lebanon and Israel taking part after the initial preparatory sessions were headed by the ambassadors of the two countries to Washington.

Lebanon's envoy heading up Thursday's talks, Simon Karam, is an attorney and well-connected former Lebanese ambassador to the U.S. who recently represented Lebanon in indirect talks with Israel over implementation of the ceasefire that preceded the latest outbreak of war between Israel and Hezbollah. On the Israeli side, Deputy National Security Adviser Yossi Draznin was set to attend.

There are still large gaps in what the two sides want from the direct talks. Israeli officials have focused on disarming Hezbollah and described the negotiations as a precursor to a potential normalization of diplomatic relations. Lebanese officials have said they are seeking a security agreement or armistice that would stop short of normalization.

Trump has publicly called for a meeting betweenLebanese President Joseph Aounand Israeli Prime MinisterBenjamin Netanyahu, while Aoun has declined to meet or speak directly with Netanyahu at this stage — a move that would likely generate blowback in Lebanon.

Lebanon hopes for ceasefire

A senior Lebanese official familiar with the negotiations in Washington said Thursday Lebanon wants a complete ceasefire first and then would negotiate withdrawal of Israeli forces. The issue of Hezbollah’s weapons would be dealt with politically in Lebanon after that, he said. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to speak frankly about the talks.

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He said Lebanon is “relying heavily on the U.S. administration” to provide it with leverage in the negotiations with Israel and believes that Trump is “sincere” in his desire to help Lebanon.

The official said that when Trump and Aoun spoke recently, Trump did not pressure Aoun to meet or speak with Netanyahu and was understanding when Aoun explained his reasons for declining. According to the official, Aoun told Trump that if he went to Washington and shook hands with Netanyahu and the talks later fell apart, it could have internal repercussions in Lebanon and discredit Trump.

Aoun told Trump that if the two countries are able to reach a security deal, he would come to the White House and “inaugurate” it and Trump responded by saying “I like that,” the official said.

If Israel agrees to a ceasefire and withdraws from the territory it is occupying in southern Lebanon, the official said, he believes Hezbollah would agree to an arrangement under which it would hand over its weapons to the Lebanese army, which could keep some of them and destroy others. Under this plan, Lebanon could consider allowing individual Hezbollah fighters to join the Lebanese army if they meet eligibility requirements, he said.

Meanwhile, Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter in an interview with Israeli news site Walla News Thursday said Israel aims “to negotiate for full peace as if Hezbollah does not exist — borders, embassies, visas, tourism, everything.” Despite Lebanese officials’ assertions that diplomatic normalization is not currently on the table, he said he believes “it is possible to reach such an agreement within a few months.” But, he added, “it would be conditioned on the success of the second track — dismantling Hezbollah.”

Hezbollah and Israel trade fire

Thursday’s talks opened hours after a Hezbollah drone exploded inside Israel, injuring three civilians, two of them severely, according to the Israeli military and hospitals. It was the first instance of civilians injured by Hezbollah projectiles since the ceasefire, according to reports from Israel’s rescue service, Magen David Adom.

Israel has struggled to halt frequentHezbollah drone attackson Israeli forces in southern Lebanon and over the border in northern Israel.

Israel has also continued to carry out strikes in Lebanon. On Wednesday, Israel struck seven vehicles in Lebanon — three of them on the main highway just south of Beirut — killing 12 people including a woman and her two children, the Lebanese Health Ministry said. Later strikes in southern Lebanon killed another 10 people, including six children, the ministry said.

Lebanon’s Health Ministry says that since the war began on March 2, 2,896 people have been killed — including around 400 since the nominal ceasefire was implemented — and 8,824 wounded. Eighteen Israeli soldiers, two Israeli civilians inside Israel and a defense contractor working in southern Lebanon have been killed on the Israeli side.

U.N. peacekeeping forces in southern Lebanon have also been caught in the crossfire and six have been killed.

Associated Press writers Joseph Federman in Jerusalem and Matthew Lee in Washington contributed.

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May 14, 2026

New round of Lebanon-Israel talks kicks off as fighting between Israel and Hezbollah continues

BEIRUT (AP) — A third round ofdirect talksbetween Israel and Lebanon kicked off in Washington Thursday, days before the expiration of a...

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