U.S. Special Envoy Thomas Barrack said he was “unbelievably satisfied” with the Lebanese government’s response to an American proposal to disarm Hezbollah, Reuters reported Monday.
The U.S. deal would reportedly see the Islamic terrorist group disarmed within four months in exchange for Israel ceasing strikes and withdrawing troops from southern Lebanon, according to Reuters. Hezbollah, once a formidable proxy ally of Iran against Israel, has been significantly weakened since the start of the conflict in 2023, with Israeli strikes and sabotage decapitating its leadership ranks.
“Both countries are trying to give the same thing — the notion of a stand-down agreement, of the cessation of hostilities, and a road to peace,” Barrack said according to Reuters.
Hezbollah was once a dominant political and military force in Lebanon, occupying the streets with soldiers and enjoying considerable sway in the halls of the nation’s parliament. However, after suffering multiple defeats at the hands of Israeli forces, the group is now in far weaker condition than it has been in recent history.
Israel killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in September 2024, and Israeli forces also eliminated multiple commanders and officials over the course of the war. Israel also killed and injured scores of Hezbollah members with sabotaged pagers and radios in September 2024.
During Israel’s strikes on Iran in June, Hezbollah did not launch retaliation attacks against Israel as some observers anticipated. Hezbollah is still seeking reassurances that it would still be able to function as a political party after disarmament, Barrack told Reuters.
Lebanon is a key nation that Israel and the U.S. have been trying to convince to join the Abraham Accords, a pact reached under President Donald Trump’s first administration that pushed Arab nations to normalize relations with the Jewish state.
“The dialogue has started between Syria and Israel, just as the dialogue needs to be reinvented by Lebanon,” Barrack said according to Reuters. “If you don’t want change, it’s no problem. The rest of the region is moving at Mach speed and you will be left behind.”
The State Department did not respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
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