News- Middle East: The Lebanese government has reportedly come under heavy pressure from the United States to force the disarmament of Hezbollah before talks can resume on the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the country.

Washington and Beirut have been in negotiations for nearly six weeks over a US-drafted roadmap that would see Hezbollah disarmed in exchange for Israel halting its airstrikes and withdrawing troops from the five positions it occupies in southern Lebanon.

Reuters cited five Lebanese sources—including officials and diplomats—as saying that Washington has intensified pressure on Beirut to hold a cabinet vote to disarm Hezbollah.

“Without a public commitment from Lebanese ministers, the US will no longer dispatch envoy Thomas Barrack to Beirut for negotiations, nor pressure Israel to stop airstrikes or withdraw troops from southern Lebanon,” the sources said.

In an earlier report, Reuters said Barrack had informed Lebanese officials that they have until November—or the end of the year at the latest—to disarm the resistance group.

Lebanon, in response, has demanded Israel’s full withdrawal from the country.

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri has insisted that the US must first ensure Israel halts its airstrikes and fully implements the ceasefire agreement reached last year between Israel and Hezbollah.

According to the sources, Israel rejected Berri’s proposal late last week. Following that, Washington began insisting that the Lebanese cabinet vote on Hezbollah’s disarmament without delay.

“The US is saying there’s no more Barrack, no more papers back and forth—the Council of Ministers should take a decision, and then we can continue discussions. They can’t wait any longer,” one Lebanese source said.

During a meeting with Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam in Beirut last week, Barrack reportedly told him that Washington cannot “compel” Israel to act.

In a post on X after the visit, Barrack said, “As long as Hezbollah retains arms, words will not suffice. The government and Hezbollah need to fully commit and act now in order to avoid consigning the Lebanese people to the stumbling status quo.”

Hezbollah has consistently maintained that it will not consider disarmament unless Israel first ceases its attacks on Lebanon.

Israel and Hezbollah agreed to a ceasefire that took effect on November 27, 2024. Under the deal, Tel Aviv was required to withdraw fully from Lebanese territory—but has kept forces stationed at five sites, in clear violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and the terms of last November’s agreement.

On July 25, Hezbollah Deputy Secretary-General Naim Qassem said the US is pushing for a new agreement in Lebanon that would begin with Hezbollah’s disarmament in exchange for only a “partial” Israeli withdrawal from the south.

He said Hezbollah "fully implemented the ceasefire agreement (with Israel) in southern Lebanon, south of the Litani River."

Naim Qassem warned that disarming the resistance movement “is a step toward Israel’s expansion, because our presence prevents that.”

Since the implementation of the ceasefire, Israel has reportedly violated the agreement more than 3,700 times through repeated assaults on Lebanese territory. Lebanese authorities have warned that the regime’s violations of the ceasefire threaten national stability.

Source: Press TV