Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on July 30, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 22, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleHezbollah's leader refuses US disarmament demands, citing Israeli interests. Lebanon faces growing pressure over Hezbollah's weapons.
BEIRUT (Reuters) -Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sheikh Naim Qassem said on Wednesday that calls for the Iran-aligned militant group's disarmament served only Israel, as the United States ramps up pressure for steps to remove its arsenal.
"Those who call for submitting arms practically demand submitting them to Israel ... We will not submit to Israel," Qassem said in a televised address.
Hezbollah emerged badly damaged from a war with Israel last year that eliminated most of the group's leadership, killed thousands of its fighters and left tens of thousands of its supporters displaced from their destroyed homes.
The U.S. is now pushing Lebanon to issue a formal cabinet decision committing to disarm Hezbollah before talks can resume on a halt to Israeli military operations in the country, five sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.
Hezbollah has publicly refused to hand over its arsenal in full, but has privately weighed scaling it back.
"Those who call for disarmament on a domestic, global or Arab level serve the Israeli project," Qassem said.
He also said the U.S. was demanding a removal of Hezbollah's missiles and drones because they "scare" Israel, accusing U.S. special envoy Thomas Barrack of calling for disarmament for the sake of Israel and not Lebanon's own security.
"Israel will not be able to defeat us and it will not be able to take Lebanon hostage," he added.
In early July, Barrack met Lebanese officials in Beirut to discuss the disarmament proposal. It would see Hezbollah fully disarmed within four months in exchange for the withdrawal of Israeli troops occupying several posts in south Lebanon and a halt to Israeli air strikes.
Hezbollah has been under pressure in recent months both within Lebanon and from Washington to completely relinquish its weaponry.
(Reporting by Maya Gebeily and Laila Bassam; writing by Jaidaa Taha; editing by Mark Heinrich)
Hezbollah leader Sheikh Naim Qassem stated that calls for disarmament serve only Israel, asserting that they will not submit their arms to Israel.
Hezbollah is under pressure both within Lebanon and from Washington to completely relinquish its weaponry, with the U.S. pushing for a formal cabinet decision on disarmament.
Hezbollah emerged badly damaged from a war with Israel last year, which resulted in the loss of most of its leadership and thousands of fighters.
The U.S. is demanding the removal of Hezbollah's missiles and drones, claiming they threaten Israel, which adds to the complexity of the disarmament discussions.
In early July, U.S. special envoy Thomas Barrack met with Lebanese officials to discuss a disarmament proposal that would require Hezbollah to be fully disarmed within four months.
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