Hezbollah Defies 'Impossible' Disarmament Plan
Hezbollah rejects Lebanon's "impossible" disarmament plan, sparking protests. The government move, proposed by the U.S., led to a standoff that coincided with a blast killing six soldiers tasked with dismantling Hezbollah infrastructure, escalating tensions.
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) — Hezbollah officials are standing firm in their rejection of a historic Lebanese government plan to disarm the group, with one senior figure labeling the effort as "impossible," creating a tense standoff that has sparked street protests and coincided with a deadly blast that killed six soldiers.
The government's move to take on the powerful militant group comes amid what a report from the news outlet The National describes as growing pressure from Washington.
According to the report, Hezbollah has doubled down on its refusal to disarm. Mahmoud Qamati, the deputy head of Hezbollah's political council, stated that the government would not be able to take the group's weapons and insisted that Hezbollah was neither isolated nor besieged despite mounting pressure.
This defiant stance was echoed by Hezbollah MP Ihab Hamada, who pledged on Monday that no weapons would be handed over and that the government's plan would ultimately fail. The decision has sparked fury within the group, which has said it will treat the directive as if it does not exist, leading to nightly protests in areas of traditional Hezbollah support.
The crisis was precipitated last week when the government in Beirut agreed on a move to disarm Hezbollah, a decision described as historic by The National. All Shiite ministers reportedly stormed out of the parliamentary session in protest of the decision.
Two days prior, the government had ordered the Lebanese army to prepare a plan, due by the end of this month, to fully disarm Hezbollah by the end of the year. In spite of the formidable obstacles, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun has pledged to see the plan through and ensure the state will have all weapons under its control.
Hezbollah has justified its position by pointing to external threats. At an event in south Lebanon, Hezbollah MP Hassan Ezzedine argued that the group could not disarm while Israel continues to violate Lebanese sovereignty through its occupation of Lebanese territories and daily air strikes.
"Every person in Lebanon has the right to do so when confronting an external enemy occupying their land … resistance is no longer merely an option, but rather a national duty," he said, according to The National. The group has consistently rejected any discussion over its arms until Israel ceases what it calls daily attacks and withdraws from five points of territory it continues to occupy despite a November ceasefire.
The geopolitical dimension of the conflict is significant, as Hezbollah has been deeply critical of the government for approving the objectives of a series of U.S. proposals that would include the group's disarmament.
The National reported that Hezbollah has accused the government of acting on the whims of Washington. While the U.S. proposals reportedly include a full Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon, there is little faith that this will materialize.
The gravity of the situation was underscored by a deadly incident on Saturday. The Lebanese army reported that a blast at a weapons depot near the Israeli border killed six soldiers.
The report from The National noted that these troops had been posted to the south to dismantle Hezbollah infrastructure in the area as a direct part of the government's new disarmament plan, highlighting the dangerous real-world consequences of the political standoff.
