Hezbollah Refuses Disarmament, Tying Move to Israeli Pullout

Hezbollah’s deputy secretary-general Naeem Qassem said 6 July that the movement will not surrender its missiles or other weapons before Israel withdraws from southern Lebanon, dismissing a U.S.–backed proposal for its disarmament. “Do not ask Hezbollah to abandon its weapons before Israel’s withdrawal,” Qassem declared in a televised statement, adding that the group’s rocket stockpile is the cornerstone of Lebanon’s defence posture.

The comments mark the most explicit rejection to date of renewed U.S. and Israeli efforts to curb Hezbollah’s military capabilities, which Washington argues violate U.N. Resolution 1701 that ended the 2006 war. Qassem countered that disarmament under current conditions would expose Lebanon to “strategic gaps” and undermine the Shiite movement’s political constituency.

Hezbollah’s stance complicates diplomatic attempts to de-escalate months of cross-border fire with Israeli forces and revive Beirut’s faltering reform agenda. With negotiations stalled, analysts warn the deadlock could heighten the risk of wider confrontation along the Israel–Lebanon frontier.