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Yahoo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Lebanon backs US proposal for Hezbollah to disarm and IDF to withdraw from south
Lebanon's government approved a US proposal on Thursday that would see the disarmament of the militant group Hezbollah and the Israeli military withdrawal from the south of the country. Tensions have been rising in Lebanon amid increased domestic and international pressure for Hezbollah to give up its remaining arsenal after a bruising war with Israel that ended last November with a US-brokered ceasefire. Hezbollah itself has doubled down on its refusal to disarm. Four Shiite ministers walked out before the vote. They included members of Hezbollah's parliamentary bloc and the allied Amal party, as well as independent Shiite parliamentarian Fadi Makki. Makki said in a post on X that he had "tried to work on bridging the gaps and bringing viewpoints closer between all parties, but I didn't succeed." He said he decided to pull out of the meeting after the other Shiite ministers left. "I couldn't bear the responsibility of making such a significant decision in the absence of a key component from the discussion," he said. The plan to disarm Hezbollah The Lebanese government asked the national army on Tuesday to prepare a plan in which only state institutions will have weapons by the end of the year. After the Cabinet meeting, Hezbollah accused the government of caving in to United States and Israeli pressure and said it would "treat this decision as if it does not exist." Information Minister Paul Morcos later said the Cabinet had voted to adopt a list of general goals laid out in a proposal submitted by US envoy Tom Barrack to Lebanese officials. They include the "gradual end of the armed presence of all non-state actors, including Hezbollah, in all Lebanese territory," the withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon, a halt to Israeli airstrikes and the release of Lebanese prisoners held in Israel, as well as the eventual demarcation of the still-disputed Lebanon-Israel border, he said. The details of the US proposal are still under discussion, Morcos added. Hezbollah officials have said the group will not discuss giving up its remaining arsenal until Israel withdraws from five hills it is occupying inside Lebanon and stops almost daily air strikes. The strikes have killed or wounded hundreds of people, most of them Hezbollah members, since the war ended in November. While the Cabinet meeting was still underway, an Israeli strike on the road leading to Lebanon's main border crossing with Syria killed five people and injured 10 others, Lebanon's health ministry said. There was no immediate comment from Israel. Israel has accused Hezbollah of trying to rebuild its military capabilities and said it is protecting its border. Since the ceasefire, Hezbollah has claimed responsibility for one attack across the border. Hezbollah is ideologically aligned with the Gaza-based militant group Hamas and began firing at Israel the day after the war in the Strip started, it says in solidarity with the Palestinian people. International efforts for peace Andrea Tenenti, a spokesperson for the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon (UNIFIL), said that peacekeepers recently found a "vast network of fortified tunnels" in different areas of southern Lebanon. They include "several bunkers, artillery pieces, multiple rocket launchers, hundreds of shells and rockets, anti-tank mines, and other explosive devices," he said. Tenenti did not specify what group was behind the tunnels and the arms. A member of the US Congress said that Washington will push Israel to withdraw from all of southern Lebanon if the Lebanese army asserts full control over the country. Related Borrell meets UNIFIL chief in Beirut, says peacekeepers have 'strong support' of EU Four Italian soldiers wounded in Hezbollah strikes on UN peacekeeping base in Lebanon "We will push hard to make sure that there is — and this is something that I will work with the Israelis on — a complete withdrawal in return for the Lebanese Armed Forces showing its ability to secure all Lebanon," Darrell Issa said, after meeting with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun in Beirut. He did not specify whether the US would ask Israel to start withdrawing its forces from the territory it is occupying in southern Lebanon before or after Hezbollah gives up its arsenal. Issa, who is of Lebanese origin, said the US must "help all the neighbours around understand that it is the exclusive right of the Lebanese Armed Forces to make decisions."
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Lebanese Shiite ministers walk out of a Cabinet meeting over plan to disarm Hezbollah
Lebanon Hezbollah BEIRUT (AP) — Shiite members of Lebanon's Cabinet walked out a government meeting on Thursday in protest of a proposed plan to disarm the Hezbollah militant group and political organization. The rest of the Cabinet then voted in favor of the U.S.-backed plan to disarm the group and implement a ceasefire with Israel. Tensions have been rising in Lebanon amid increased domestic and international pressure for Hezbollah to give up its remaining arsenal after a bruising war with Israel that ended last November with a U.S.-brokered ceasefire. Hezbollah itself has doubled down on its refusal to disarm. The four ministers who walked out before the vote included members of Hezbollah's parliamentary bloc and the allied Amal party, as well as independent Shiite parliamentarian Fadi Makki. Makki said on X that he had 'tried to work on bridging the gaps and bringing viewpoints closer between all parties, but I didn't succeed.' He said he decided to pull out of the meeting after the other Shiite ministers left. 'I couldn't bear the responsibility of making such a significant decision in the absence of a key component from the discussion," he said. The plan to disarm Hezbollah The Lebanese government asked the national army on Tuesday to prepare a plan in which only state institutions in the small nation will have weapons by the end of the year. After the Cabinet meeting, Hezbollah accused the government of caving to United States and Israeli pressure and said it would 'treat this decision as if it does not exist.' Information Minister Paul Morcos later said the Cabinet had voted to adopt a list of general goals laid out in a proposal submitted by U.S. envoy Tom Barrack to Lebanese officials. They include the 'gradual end of the armed presence of all non-state actors, including Hezbollah, in all Lebanese territory," the withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon, a halt to Israeli airstrikes and the release of Lebanese prisoners held in Israel, as well as the eventual demarcation of the still-disputed Lebanon-Israel border, he said. The details of the U.S. proposal are still under discussion, Morcos added. Hezbollah officials have said the group will not discuss giving up its remaining arsenal until Israel withdraws from five hills it is occupying inside Lebanon and stops almost daily airstrikes. The strikes have killed or wounded hundreds of people, most of them Hezbollah members, since the latest Hezbollah-Israel war ended in November. While the Cabinet meeting was still underway, an Israeli strike on the road leading to Lebanon's main border crossing with Syria killed five people and injured 10 others, Lebanon's health ministry said. There was no immediate comment from Israel. Israel has accused Hezbollah of trying to rebuild its military capabilities and said it is protecting its border. Since the ceasefire, Hezbollah has claimed responsibility for one attack across the border. The ceasefire agreement mandated that both Hezbollah and Israel should withdraw from southern Lebanon but left vague how Hezbollah's weapons and military facilities farther north of the border area would be treated, saying Lebanese authorities should dismantle unauthorized facilities, starting with the area south of the Litani River. Hezbollah claims the deal only applies to the area south of the Litani, while Israel and the U.S. say it mandates disarmament of the group throughout Lebanon. International efforts for peace Andrea Tenenti, a spokesperson for the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, said that peacekeepers — along Lebanese army soldiers — recently found a 'vast network of fortified tunnels' in different areas of southern Lebanon. They include 'several bunkers, artillery pieces, multiple rocket launchers, hundreds of shells and rockets, anti-tank mines, and other explosive devices," he said. Tenenti did not specify what group was behind the tunnels and the arms. A member of the U.S. Congress said that Washington will push Israel to withdraw from all of southern Lebanon if the Lebanese army asserts full control over the country. 'We will push hard to make sure that there is — and this is something that I will work with the Israelis on — a complete withdrawal in return for the Lebanese Armed Forces showing its ability to secure all Lebanon,' California Republican Rep. Darrell Issa said, after meeting with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun in Beirut. He did not specify whether the U.S. would ask Israel to start withdrawing its forces from the territory it is occupying in southern Lebanon before or after Hezbollah gives up its arsenal. Issa, who is of Lebanese origin, said the U.S. must "help all the neighbors around understand that it is the exclusive right of the Lebanese Armed Forces to make decisions.' 'If there's something that goes wrong, the Lebanese Armed Forces will be asked to to be responsible,' he said. Solve the daily Crossword
Asharq Al-Awsat
5 days ago
- Politics
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Lebanese Cabinet Approves Objectives of US Proposal on Hezbollah as Shiite Ministers Walk Out of Meeting
Lebanon's information minister said the cabinet had approved on Thursday only the objectives of a US proposal for disarming Hezbollah by the end of the year, along with ending Israel's military operations in the country, but they did not discuss the full details of it. The objectives of the proposal include phasing out the armed presence of non-state actors including Hezbollah, deploying Lebanese forces to key border and internal areas, ensuring Israel's withdrawal from the five positions, resolving prisoner issues through indirect talks, and permanently demarcating Lebanon's borders with Israel and Syria. Four Shiite members of the cabinet withdrew from the government meeting to protest the proposed plan to disarm Hezbollah. They included members of Hezbollah's parliamentary bloc and the allied Amal party, as well as independent Shiite parliamentarian Fadi Makki. The meeting was adjourned after their exit. Makki said on the social media platform X that he had 'tried to work on bridging the gaps and bringing viewpoints closer between all parties, but I didn't succeed.' He said he had decided to withdraw from the meeting after the other Shiite ministers left. 'I couldn't bear the responsibility of making such a significant decision in the absence of a key component from the discussion," he said. The Lebanese government asked the national army on Tuesday to prepare a plan in which only state institutions will have weapons by the end of the year. The discussions were set to continue Thursday. After Tuesday's cabinet meeting, Hezbollah accused the government of caving to US and Israeli pressure and said it would 'treat this decision as if it does not exist.' Hezbollah officials have said the group will not discuss giving up its remaining arsenal until Israel withdraws from five hills it is occupying inside Lebanon and stops almost daily airstrikes. The strikes have killed or wounded hundreds of people, most of them Hezbollah members, since the latest Israel-Hezbollah war ended in November with a US-brokered ceasefire. US envoy Tom Barrack said on Thursday Lebanon's government had taken a "historic" decision this week by moving to disarm Hezbollah, which Washington has pushed for. In a post on X, Barrack congratulated Lebanese leaders "for making the historic, bold, and correct decision this week to begin fully implementing" a November ceasefire which ended more than a year of hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel, and stipulated that weapons in Lebanon be restricted to government agencies only. "This week's cabinet resolutions finally put into motion the 'One Nation, One Army' solution for Lebanon. We stand behind the Lebanese people," Barrack said.
The Independent
5 days ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Lebanese Shiite ministers walk out of Cabinet meeting over Hezbollah disarmament plan
Four Shiite members of Lebanon's Cabinet withdrew Thursday from a government meeting to protest a proposed plan to disarm the Shiite militant group and political party Hezbollah. They included members of Hezbollah's parliamentary bloc and the allied Amal party, as well as independent Shiite parliamentarian Fadi Makki. The meeting was adjourned after their exit. Tensions have been rising in Lebanon amid increased domestic and international pressure for Hezbollah to give up its remaining arsenal after a bruising war with Israel, while the group has doubled down on its refusal to disarm. Makki said on the social media platform X that he had 'tried to work on bridging the gaps and bringing viewpoints closer between all parties, but I didn't succeed.' He said he had decided to withdraw from the meeting after the other Shiite ministers left. 'I couldn't bear the responsibility of making such a significant decision in the absence of a key component from the discussion," he said. The plan to disarm Hezbollah The Lebanese government asked the national army on Tuesday to prepare a plan in which only state institutions in the small nation will have weapons by the end of the year. The discussions were set to continue Thursday. After Tuesday's Cabinet meeting, Hezbollah accused the government of caving to U.S. and Israeli pressure and said it would 'treat this decision as if it does not exist.' Hezbollah officials have said the group will not discuss giving up its remaining arsenal until Israel withdraws from five hills it is occupying inside Lebanon and stops almost daily airstrikes. The strikes have killed or wounded hundreds of people, most of them Hezbollah members, since the latest Israel-Hezbollah war ended in November with a U.S.-brokered ceasefire. Israel has accused Hezbollah of trying to rebuild its military capabilities and said it is protecting its border. Since the ceasefire, Hezbollah has claimed responsibility for one attack fired across the border. The ceasefire agreement mandated that both Hezbollah and Israel should withdraw from southern Lebanon but left vague how Hezbollah's weapons and military facilities farther north of the border should be treated, saying Lebanese authorities should dismantle unauthorized facilities starting with the area south of the Litani River. Hezbollah maintains the deal only covers the area south of the Litani, while Israel and the U.S. say it mandates disarmament of the group throughout Lebanon. International efforts to ensure peace Andrea Tenenti, a spokesperson for the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, said that peacekeepers along with soldiers from the Lebanese army recently found a 'vast network of fortified tunnels' in different areas of southern Lebanon. They include 'several bunkers, artillery pieces, multiple rocket launchers, hundreds of shells and rockets, anti-tank mines, and other explosive devices," he said. A member of the U.S. Congress said that Washington will push Israel to withdraw from all of southern Lebanon if the Lebanese army asserts full control over the country. 'We will push hard to make sure that there is — and this is something that I will work with the Israelis on — a complete withdrawal in return for the Lebanese Armed Forces showing its ability to secure all Lebanon,' California Republican U.S. Rep. Darrell Issa said, after meeting with President Joseph Aoun in Beirut. He did not specify whether the U.S. would ask Israel to begin withdrawing its forces from the territory it is occupying in southern Lebanon before or after Hezbollah gives up its arsenal. Issa, who is of Lebanese origin, said the U.S. must "help all the neighbors around understand that it is the exclusive right of the Lebanese Armed Forces to make decisions.' 'If there's something that goes wrong, the Lebanese Armed Forces will be asked to to be responsible,' he said.
