Lebanon’s Hezbollah has firmly rejected a proposed U.S.-backed disarmament timeline, vowing to retaliate against Israel if any military escalation occurs.
Speaking in a televised address, Hezbollah’s Secretary-General Naim Qassem said the group would not accept any new agreement involving disarmament or revised security arrangements. He strongly dismissed the idea of surrendering weapons while “Israeli aggression on Lebanon continues.”
Qassem revealed that U.S. envoy Thomas Barrack had proposed a 30-day disarmament window that would even include hand grenades and mortars. The plan also called for dismantling 50% of Hezbollah’s military capabilities within a month—terms Qassem called “unacceptable.”
“If Israel launches a wide-scale aggression on Lebanon, it will face a united response from the resistance, the army, and the people,” Qassem warned. “Rockets will rain down inside Israel and push it back to square one after eight months of so-called ‘security,’” he added.
His statement coincided with a Lebanese Cabinet meeting in Beirut, where ministers were reportedly discussing efforts to limit all weapons to state control—a move widely seen as a step toward reining in Hezbollah’s arsenal.