Hezbollah Rejects Disarmament

(MENAFN) Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem firmly declared on Wednesday that the group would not relinquish its arms “for the sake of Israel,” emphasizing that the matter of disarmament is “a purely internal Lebanese matter.”

In a speech broadcast on television, Qassem responded to suggestions connecting a potential ceasefire with the organization laying down its arms, stating, “If some people are linking disarmament to a ceasefire agreement, I tell them that weapons are a Lebanese internal matter and have nothing to do with the Israeli enemy.”

He reiterated Hezbollah’s stance, asserting, “We will not surrender our weapons for Israel.”

He added that giving up arms is not the immediate concern, as the current priorities are “reconstruction and ending the aggression.”

Qassem underlined that it is “impossible” for Lebanon to be the only party adhering to a truce while the opposing side, Israel, continues its offensives.

He accused the Israeli military of sustaining aggression and holding onto five strategic positions in Lebanon, which he described as a preparation for further territorial ambitions.

On the previous day, Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam stated that his administration would resume discussions next week focused on “extending the state’s sovereignty over all its territories exclusively through its own forces,” a remark widely seen as an indirect appeal for Hezbollah’s disarmament and for consolidating all military capabilities under the state’s command.

Meanwhile, U.S. envoy Thomas Barrack urged Beirut on Sunday to place all arms under governmental authority.

Barrack had just wrapped up a four-day trip to the Lebanese capital, during which he was formally handed Lebanon’s reply to Washington’s proposition — a deal involving Hezbollah’s disarmament in exchange for Israel’s withdrawal and the reconstruction of southern Lebanon.

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