SAEDNEWS: As Washington intensifies diplomatic efforts to dismantle Hezbollah’s arsenal, Lebanon has issued a firm and measured reply—one that ties any disarmament to Israel’s full withdrawal from Lebanese territory and adherence to past ceasefire terms.
According to Saed News, Lebanon has formally replied to a U.S. proposal calling for Hezbollah’s disarmament, amid sustained Israeli strikes and intensifying American pressure. In a high-profile meeting at Baabda Palace on July 7, President Joseph Aoun handed U.S. Special Envoy Thomas Barrack a seven-page document outlining Beirut’s position. Barrack, also ambassador to Türkiye, described the response as “something spectacular,” though the contents remain confidential.
The Biden administration’s successor, under President Donald Trump, has renewed calls for Hezbollah to lay down arms as a prerequisite for postwar stabilization in the Levant. Trump, fresh from declaring victory over Iran’s nuclear infrastructure in late June, now appears to be directing diplomatic firepower at Hezbollah, long considered an Iranian proxy by Washington and Tel Aviv.
Yet Lebanon’s reply reportedly shifts the burden back to Israel and the U.S. Beirut is said to have demanded an Israeli pullback from five key positions occupied during the recent conflict, the release of Lebanese detainees, and full compliance with UN Security Council Resolution 1701—which mandates Hezbollah’s withdrawal from the south but also affirms Lebanon’s territorial integrity.
The response lands at a precarious time. With daily Israeli attacks continuing despite the November 2024 ceasefire, Lebanon’s government faces mounting internal pressure to preserve national sovereignty while navigating economic collapse and shattered infrastructure.
Though disarmament remains a divisive issue—particularly within Lebanon’s Shia community, where Hezbollah draws deep support—Beirut’s message to Washington was clear: stability cannot be achieved through unilateral disarmament, especially under fire.
