Lebanon rejects Trump call for Syria to confront Hezbollah

Speaking to CNN on Wednesday, June 17, Nassar said disarming the Iran-backed group is the responsibility of the Lebanese state, and that foreign forces should not carry out the task.

The justice minister added that Lebanon has suffered for years from foreign interference, and if Hezbollah is acting today as Iran’s proxy, that is because of Iranian interference in Lebanon’s internal affairs.

“All we are asking for is that all countries stop interfering in Lebanon’s affairs,” Nassar said, stressing the need to extend Lebanon’s sovereignty across all its territory. That means Israeli forces must withdraw and the party’s military infrastructure must be dismantled, he said.

Nassar called on all countries in the international community to support the Lebanese army, describing that as critically important.

The Lebanese government’s rejection came after Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said Wednesday that Lebanon supports any country that helps secure a ceasefire with Israel, “including Iran.”

Aoun wrote on X, in remarks during a meeting with a delegation of Maronite bishops, “The assurances we have received, and what we insist on, is that Lebanon’s path is independent in the negotiations. We are certainly in favor of a ceasefire and of any country helping us, including Iran.”

Aoun added that “negotiations are conducted by the Lebanese state, which is sovereign in its decisions. No one takes its place, and any settlement will be made through us, not at our expense.”

In press remarks on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit in France on Tuesday, Trump said, “I am not happy with the way Israel dealt with Lebanon and with Hezbollah. They should have been able to get the job done faster.”

Trump said he had suggested to Israel that it leave the task of dealing with Lebanese Hezbollah to Syria, adding, “You do not have to destroy an entire apartment building looking for one Hezbollah person. There are many people living in those buildings, and not all of them are party members.”

“The person running Syria, President al-Sharaa, is someone whom I, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and others supported, and we helped bring him to power. He has done an exceptional job in reorganizing the country,” Trump said.

Trump added, “I suggested to Israel that Syria handle Hezbollah, because frankly I think they will do a better job.”

“If Israel cannot get the job done against Hezbollah without killing everyone, then he, al-Sharaa, will handle it. Syria will do the job,” he added.

Damascus rejects US proposal

On June 15, Ahmed Mowaffak Zaidan, media adviser to the Syrian presidency, revealed that the United States had proposed that Damascus intervene in Lebanon amid rapidly unfolding security developments, but Syria rejected the idea and said it was not concerned with any military or security intervention in Lebanese affairs.

Zaidan told Saudi channel Al Arabiya that Syria supports the Lebanese state extending its control over all its territory, stressing that support for the Lebanese government should not come through military intervention, but through empowering state institutions and strengthening their legitimate authority.

The Syrian presidential adviser added that Damascus views Lebanon’s stability as an important regional interest, but remains committed

to the principle of respecting sovereignty and non-interference in the internal affairs of states.

Zaidan stressed that Syria views Lebanon’s stability as part of the region’s stability, but rejects any return to roles or arrangements that bypass the sovereignty of the Lebanese state and the right of its institutions to manage the country’s affairs.

On June 12, Agence France-Presse quoted two sources who attended a meeting at the People’s Palace in Damascus as saying that Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa denied any Syrian intention to enter Lebanon, describing circulating reports about the matter as “rumors.”

The agency said al-Sharaa’s remarks came during a meeting with a delegation of notables and dignitaries from Rural Damascus governorate.

Al-Sharaa’s denial coincided with circulating reports that units from the 44th and 70th divisions had begun withdrawing from their positions in Rural Damascus, specifically in the areas of al-Kiswah and al-Zabadani, and redeploying along the Syrian-Lebanese border in rural Homs, as part of preparations for a possible Syrian military intervention on Lebanese territory.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, meanwhile, expressed confidence in his Syrian counterpart, Ahmed al-Sharaa, on June 11, saying he recognizes al-Sharaa’s “high sense of responsibility and political awareness,” which, in Aoun’s view, ensures he will not be dragged into the Lebanese quagmire.

[Source: Enab Baladi English]