Hezbollah rejects Israel-Lebanon agreement as Israeli attacks hit south
✓Hezbollah supporters and many others in Lebanon view latest agreement with Israel as a ‘surrender of sovereignty’.
Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem has rejected the framework agreement signed by Lebanon and Israel in Washington DC, calling it “humiliating, shameful and a surrender of sovereignty” for Beirut.
In a statement released on Saturday, Qassem rejected linking Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon to Hezbollah’s disarmament, which is a key part of the US-mediated agreement signed on Friday.
“We will continue as a resistance in the field to defeat the occupation [Israel] … We did not leave the field under difficult circumstances and we will not abandon it,” Qassem said.
The Hezbollah leader also accused Lebanon’s government of legitimising Israel’s occupation “for many years to come” by signing the agreement with Israel, saying that it “could lead to the annexation of these lands to the Zionist entity”.
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and other officials have suggested that Israel might remain in Lebanon regardless of Hezbollah’s disarmament.
“We are there until Hezbollah disarms and I think also beyond that, because we need defendable borders,” Smotrich said earlier this week.
The agreement does not force Israel to withdraw from southern Lebanon.
As Al Jazeera’s Lebanon correspondent Zeina Khodr noted: “The word withdrawal is not in [the] text”.
Instead, Khodr said the text is a “path towards normalisation [between Israel and Lebanon] – the two states both recognise each other’s right to exist in ‘peace’, declare intention to formally end state of war, pursue direct negotiations under US mediation, establish permanent channels of direct communication and begin drafting a comprehensive peace and security agreement”.
After the signing, Hezbollah supporters in Lebanon made their anger known, taking to the streets of Beirut on Friday evening, burning tyres and blocking a road leading to the airport.
They were protesting the agreement, as well as Israeli forces remaining in Lebanese territory and continuing Israeli air raids in southern Lebanon.
Despite the agreement, Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency (NNA) said Israeli forces bombed near the southern towns of Markaba and Nabatieh al-Fawqa on Saturday morning.
NNA said Israeli forces bombed overnight near the town of Markaba, 1.5km (1 mile) from the Israel-Lebanon border.
Lebanese officials seem optimistic about the deal and its potential for ending hostilities with neighbouring Israel, despite Hezbollah not being involved in the agreement nor the talks that preceded it.
Lebanese member of parliament and former justice minister, Ashraf Rifi, praised the agreement, saying Lebanon was finally “acting like a state”.
“It is no longer acceptable for Lebanese decision-making to remain hostage to the Iranian project, or for Hezbollah to continue its dominance over the state and its institutions,” he added.
Lebanese MP and leader of the Free Patriotic Movement, Gebran Bassil, said the framework agreement between Israel and Lebanon “requires responsible engagement”.
In response to the Hezbollah-led protests, Public Prosecutor Judge Ahmad Rami al-Hajj issued a judicial order, tasking the Lebanese security forces with preventing riots, NNA reported. The judge also requested that security agencies work to identify rioters so legal action can be taken.
Alon Pinkas, an Israeli former ambassador and consul general in New York, told Al Jazeera that he’s “very doubtful and sceptical that this [agreement] will work out because the deal is between Israel and Lebanon with the US, and Israel and Lebanon do not really have territorial issues or any kind of issues; the issue here is Hezbollah”.
Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah told Al Jazeera that any attempt by the Lebanese army to enforce a Washington-brokered agreement would lead to “civil war”.
Read the full story at Al Jazeera ↗ · Al Jazeera ↗ · Al Jazeera ↗ · BBC ↗ · Axios ↗
Israel and Lebanon signed a framework agreement following US-mediated talks. The accord establishes mutual recognition, declares intent to end their state of war, and commits both sides to direct negotiations and permanent communication channels under US mediation. Hezbollah, excluded from negotiations, rejected the agreement, stating it constitutes a surrender of Lebanese sovereignty and linking disarmament to Israeli withdrawal is unacceptable. Hezbollah's political leadership vowed to continue resistance activities. Israeli officials including Finance Minister Smotrich have indicated Israel may remain in Lebanese territory beyond any Hezbollah disarmament. The agreement text does not mandate Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon. After signing, Hezbollah supporters protested in Beirut; Israeli military operations continued in southern Lebanese towns. Some Lebanese officials, including parliament members, supported the agreement as a step toward state sovereignty independent of Hezbollah influence. A Hezbollah MP warned enforcement could trigger internal conflict.
Read the full story at Al Jazeera ↗ · Al Jazeera ↗ · Al Jazeera ↗ · BBC ↗ · Axios ↗
Hezbollah supporters and many others in Lebanon view latest agreement with Israel as a ‘surrender of sovereignty’.
Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem has rejected the framework agreement signed by Lebanon and Israel in Washington DC, calling it “humiliating, shameful and a surrender of sovereignty” for Beirut.
In a statement released on Saturday, Qassem rejected linking Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon to Hezbollah’s disarmament, which is a key part of the US-mediated agreement signed on Friday.
“We will continue as a resistance in the field to defeat the occupation [Israel] … We did not leave the field under difficult circumstances and we will not abandon it,” Qassem said.
The Hezbollah leader also accused Lebanon’s government of legitimising Israel’s occupation “for many years to come” by signing the agreement with Israel, saying that it “could lead to the annexation of these lands to the Zionist entity”.
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and other officials have suggested that Israel might remain in Lebanon regardless of Hezbollah’s disarmament.
“We are there until Hezbollah disarms and I think also beyond that, because we need defendable borders,” Smotrich said earlier this week.
The agreement does not force Israel to withdraw from southern Lebanon.
As Al Jazeera’s Lebanon correspondent Zeina Khodr noted: “The word withdrawal is not in [the] text”.
Instead, Khodr said the text is a “path towards normalisation [between Israel and Lebanon] – the two states both recognise each other’s right to exist in ‘peace’, declare intention to formally end state of war, pursue direct negotiations under US mediation, establish permanent channels of direct communication and begin drafting a comprehensive peace and security agreement”.
After the signing, Hezbollah supporters in Lebanon made their anger known, taking to the streets of Beirut on Friday evening, burning tyres and blocking a road leading to the airport.
They were protesting the agreement, as well as Israeli forces remaining in Lebanese territory and continuing Israeli air raids in southern Lebanon.
Despite the agreement, Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency (NNA) said Israeli forces bombed near the southern towns of Markaba and Nabatieh al-Fawqa on Saturday morning.
NNA said Israeli forces bombed overnight near the town of Markaba, 1.5km (1 mile) from the Israel-Lebanon border.
Lebanese officials seem optimistic about the deal and its potential for ending hostilities with neighbouring Israel, despite Hezbollah not being involved in the agreement nor the talks that preceded it.
Lebanese member of parliament and former justice minister, Ashraf Rifi, praised the agreement, saying Lebanon was finally “acting like a state”.
“It is no longer acceptable for Lebanese decision-making to remain hostage to the Iranian project, or for Hezbollah to continue its dominance over the state and its institutions,” he added.
Lebanese MP and leader of the Free Patriotic Movement, Gebran Bassil, said the framework agreement between Israel and Lebanon “requires responsible engagement”.
In response to the Hezbollah-led protests, Public Prosecutor Judge Ahmad Rami al-Hajj issued a judicial order, tasking the Lebanese security forces with preventing riots, NNA reported. The judge also requested that security agencies work to identify rioters so legal action can be taken.
Alon Pinkas, an Israeli former ambassador and consul general in New York, told Al Jazeera that he’s “very doubtful and sceptical that this [agreement] will work out because the deal is between Israel and Lebanon with the US, and Israel and Lebanon do not really have territorial issues or any kind of issues; the issue here is Hezbollah”.
Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah told Al Jazeera that any attempt by the Lebanese army to enforce a Washington-brokered agreement would lead to “civil war”.
Read the full story at Al Jazeera ↗ · Al Jazeera ↗ · Al Jazeera ↗ · BBC ↗ · Axios ↗
Israel and Lebanon signed a framework agreement in Washington following US-brokered talks. Hezbollah was not party to the agreement negotiations. Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem called the agreement 'humiliating, shameful and a surrender of sovereignty'. The agreement establishes mutual recognition, declares intent to end the state of war, and commits both sides to direct negotiations and permanent communication channels under US mediation. The agreement text does not require Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon. Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich stated Israel may remain in Lebanese territory beyond Hezbollah's disarmament for 'defendable borders'. Hezbollah supporters protested in Beirut on Friday evening, burning tyres and blocking roads to the airport. Israeli forces conducted airstrikes near southern Lebanese towns of Markaba and Nabatieh al-Fawqa on Saturday morning after the agreement was signed. Lebanese MP Ashraf Rifi praised the agreement as Lebanon 'acting like a state' independent of Iranian and Hezbollah influence. A Hezbollah MP warned that Lebanese army enforcement of the agreement could lead to civil war. An Israeli former ambassador expressed skepticism the agreement would succeed because the core issue is Hezbollah, not territorial disputes between the two states.
Read the full story at Al Jazeera ↗ · Al Jazeera ↗ · Al Jazeera ↗ · BBC ↗ · Axios ↗
- Israel and Lebanon signed a US-brokered framework agreement in Washington; Hezbollah, which was not party to talks, rejected it as a surrender of sovereignty
- The agreement outlines a path toward normalization and direct negotiations but does not require Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon
- Hezbollah supporters protested in Beirut; Israeli airstrikes continued in southern Lebanon after the agreement was signed
- Lebanese officials praised the deal; Hezbollah warned that enforcing it could trigger civil conflict