Latest news with #Iran-Hezbollah
The Sun
13-08-2025
- Politics
- The Sun
Iran security chief pledges ongoing support for Lebanon amid Hezbollah disarmament plans
BEIRUT: Iran's top security chief Ali Larijani reaffirmed Tehran's commitment to supporting Lebanon during a visit on Wednesday, as the Lebanese government ordered its army to draft a plan to disarm the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah. Larijani's trip follows Iran's vocal opposition to Lebanon's efforts to disarm Hezbollah, a group once considered better armed than the Lebanese military before its 2024 conflict with Israel. 'If the Lebanese people are suffering, we in Iran will also feel this pain and we will stand by the dear people of Lebanon in all circumstances,' Larijani, head of Iran's National Security Council, told reporters upon arriving in Beirut. Dozens of Hezbollah supporters lined the airport road to welcome Larijani, who briefly stepped out of his car to acknowledge their chants of solidarity. During his visit, Larijani is set to meet Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, a key Hezbollah ally. Iran has faced setbacks in its rivalry with Israel, including a 12-day war in June, while Hezbollah's influence has waned since a November 2024 ceasefire with Israel. The US-backed Lebanese government has since taken steps to curb Hezbollah's power, part of Iran's 'axis of resistance' alongside groups like Hamas and Yemen's Huthi rebels. The fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime in Syria, a key conduit for Iran-Hezbollah arms transfers, has further disrupted supply routes to Lebanon. Iran has condemned Lebanon's disarmament push, with Hezbollah denouncing the move as a 'grave sin'. – AFP
The National
17-03-2025
- Politics
- The National
US offers $10m for information on Hezbollah financing network
The US State Department is offering a reward of up to $10 million for information on Lebanese Hezbollah's financing network. 'Smuggled cash from Iran supports Hezbollah terrorists in Lebanon,' the department said in a post on X. 'Help us stop the money flow.' In a more detailed pamphlet attached to the post, the State Department said that Hezbollah funds its 'terrorism through various illicit activities including use of commercial and other civilian aircraft to smuggle cash". Anyone with information on 'airport employees, customs officers or aviation officials' who may be involved in Hezbollah financing networks were urged to come forward. The US has often offered cash incentives to try to gather information on foreign terrorist organisations and wanted people. In 2021, it offered $10 million to anyone with information on Salim Ayyash, a Hezbollah member sentenced in the killing of former Lebanese prime minister Rafic Hariri 16 years earlier. In 2020, it offered the same amount for information on an Iran-Hezbollah financing network. Hezbollah, once a powerful political and military organisation, is reeling from a string of defeats at the hands of Israel. Last year, the Israeli military killed Hezbollah's long-time leader Hassan Nasrallah, an influential figure in Lebanon and the wider region, as well as other leaders. It severely hampered the group's military capabilities. The US has thrown its support behind Lebanon's new government led by Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and President Joseph Aoun, and urged the country to prevent Hezbollah from rebuilding.
