The Hezbollah militia rebuffed a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, casting fresh doubt around the possibility of an imminent U.S.-Iran peace deal.

Tehran, which is aligned with Hezbollah militants, has made a cessation in fighting in Lebanon a key demand in peace negotiations with Washington. The U.S. and Israel launched a joint assault on Iran in late February that has since spread to include other areas of the Middle East, including Lebanon.

In a statement, Hezbollah leader Naim Kassem described the U.S.-brokered agreement between Israel and Lebanon earlier this week as "absurd, humiliating, and insulting," adding that Israel must fully withdraw from Lebanon before Hezbollah would halt its attacks, according to the Associated Press.

Kassem argued that Israel-Lebanon agreement, which the U.S. State Department said was contingent upon Hezbollah stopping strikes on Israeli forces and withdrawing soldiers from the contested area of southern Lebanon, was a "road map for the annihilation of a section of the Lebanese people and the enslavement of the rest," the Wall Street Journal reported.

According to AP, the Hezbollah announcement came as Israeli attacks killed at least four people. Lebanese troops moved into areas of southern Lebanon on Thursday which have been the scene of intense fighting for months, the AP said, citing state media.

Still, Israel has said it would carry on its offensive in southern Lebanon, with Defense Minister Israel Katz saying operations to raze what it describes as militant infrastructure would continue, the WSJ reported.

All of these developments have left the actual status of the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire mired in uncertainty. U.S. President Donald Trump has reportedly been at odds with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over Israel’s push to attack Hezbollah positions in Beirut, the WSJ said. Iran has threatened to put a stop to peace discussions with Washington should Israel strike the Lebanese capital.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, inched lower on Friday, but were on pace for its first weekly gain in three weeks. Oil prices have gained since the start of the Iran conflict, due largely to the Strait of Hormuz, which has been effectively closed to tanker traffic for months, crimping global energy supply flows.