Lebanon: President Aoun pushes for Hezbollah’s disarmament

Calls for Hezbollah’s disarmament continue, as Lebanese President Joseph Aoun implied on July 31st that if Hezbollah does not surrender its arms, Israel will see this as a reason to proceed with attacks, as reported by Asharq Al-Aswat via Reuters and AFP.

Aoun further stated that this issue would be spoken about during an upcoming cabinet meeting. The country’s cabinet will formally discuss the disarmament of Hezbollah on August 5th in order to finalise discussions around the exclusivity of arms.

The remarks made by Aoun are the latest of several calls made to Hezbollah regarding requests for disarmament, signifying the intensifying pressure on the group. This pressure has been present since Hezbollah found itself in a war against Israel last year. The war severely impacted Hezbollah in which thousands of its soldiers were killed, as well as its leadership. 

The government of Beirut seeks to have Hezbollah disarmed in order to create a monopoly on weapons. Whilst Hezbollah is facing internal pressure from its own country, it is also facing pressure from elsewhere. The US is also pushing for Hezbollah to give up its weapons. US Special Envoy  Thomas Barrack met with Lebanese officials earlier last month to discuss a proposal for disarmament.

Barrack has been accused of urging for disarmament in order to support Israel, rather than to support the interests of Lebanon’s security. Hezbollah leader Sheikh Naim Qassem went on television to address the growing calls for disarmament on July 30th, confirming that giving up weapons would only serve Israel.

The Israeli military delivered a statement on July 31st, saying it had targeted infrastructure used to produce and store weapons in both Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley and the south of Lebanon, according to AFP. One of the targets was reportedly a missile manufacturing site of Hezbollah’s. 

Washington has deemed Hezbollah as a terrorist group, and has pushed Lebanon into disarming Hezbollah before negotiations can go ahead on stopping Israeli military operations, according to Reuters.

During a speech to army officers, Aoun stated that his government would soon examine Lebanon’s amendments to a US plan for Hezbollah to lay down its arms. The counter proposal made by Lebanon includes the demand for Israel to instantly stop its attacks and withdraw from the south. Demands also include the formation of state control for Lebanon, and the disarmament of armed groups, such as Hezbollah.

Asharq Al-Aswat via Reuters and AFP, Maghrebi.org