US responds to Hezbollah disarmament plan, Israel attacks Lebanon

Officials in Lebanon got a response from the US to their proposal for the disarmament of Hezbollah, as Israel launched air strikes on Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley on July 15th, according to The National.

The response, which was defined as “a collection of ideas,’’ was delivered via the US embassy in Beirut, according to a Lebanese source familiar with the conversations. However, the source did not state whether the US had set a timeline for Hezbollah to disarm by the end of 2025, as suggested by different Lebanese media reports.

The US Embassy in Beirut did not comment on the disarmament of Hezbollah. The Lebanese Parliament convened on July 15th for a meeting to interrogate the government over its performance since taking office in 2025.

“Time is passing, and we ask you to establish a timeline in a cabinet session for state control and restriction of arms to the state alone,” Lebanese Forces party member, Georges Adwan, said to the Lebanese Prime minister Nawaf Salam during the start of the session.

During the time of the session, Israel began a wave of attacks on the Eastern Bekaa Valley against compounds which Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force allegedly used. Israel’s fighter jets carried out “numerous strikes” against military compounds that were used for training and organising assaults on Israel, according to Israel’s military. No immediate reports of fatalities were issued.

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz stated that the attacks send a “clear message,” towards the Lebanese government and Hezbollah.

US special envoy Thomas Barrack was in Beirut recently to receive the response to a US plan which intends to disarm Hezbollah and advance reforms in Lebanon, helping the country tackle its almost six-year economic crisis.

Since the US-brokered ceasefire that took effect in November 2024, Hezbollah withdrew nearly all of its troops from the Israeli border, although Israel has said it needs to be disarmed nationwide.

Despite the ceasefire, the Israeli army continues to launch strikes on Lebanon’s southern border nearly every day and maintains control over five military posts along the southern border. It has also occasionally targeted Beirut’s southern suburbs and the Beqaa Valley since the truce.

Previously, Israeli troops further pressed into Lebanon’s southern border in ground operations, intending to dismantle alleged Hezbollah infrastructure. 

Hezbollah is strongly resistant to the push for its disarmament. Meanwhile, Israel still occupies five points of Lebanese territory.

The National, Maghrebi.org