Hezbollah Chief Rejects Disarmament Amid US and Lebanese Pressure, Accuses Washington of Aiding Israel

Hezbollah chief Sheikh Naim Qassem has once again rejected calls for the Lebanon-based terrorist group to disarm, saying such demands only serve Israel’s interests amid mounting pressure from the United States and the Lebanese government.

“Those who call for us to surrender our weapons are practically asking us to hand them over to Israel. We will not submit to Israel,” Qassem said in a televised speech on Wednesday.

“The US is destroying Lebanon in order to help the Zionist enemy [Israel],” he continued.

Washington and Beirut have engaged in multiple rounds of negotiations in recent weeks over a US proposal to fully disarm the Iran-backed terrorist group, which for years as held significant political power in Lebanon.

The latest proposal calls for Hezbollah to be fully disarmed within four months in exchange for Israel halting airstrikes and withdrawing troops from its five occupied posts in southern Lebanon.

“The US wants to use Lebanon as a tool to implement its own greater Middle East scheme,” Qassem said during his speech.

“The US is complicit in Israel’s violations of the ceasefire and is fueling tensions among Lebanese factions,” the terrorist leader continued.

Washington’s proposal initially called for the Lebanese government to pass a cabinet decision committing to Hezbollah’s disarmament — a step the US is now actively pushing for before resuming talks on ending Israeli military operations.

Despite growing diplomatic pressure, the Lebanese terrorist group has repeatedly rejected demands to surrender its weapons.

“Resistance in Lebanon has proved to be one of the pillars of state construction. Hezbollah’s weapons will be used to protect Lebanon against the Zionist enemy,” Qassem said. “All those who demand Hezbollah’s disarmament are serving the Israeli plot. The resistance will never agree to hand over its weapons to the Zionist enemy.”

Qassem also argued that increasing demands for Hezbollah’s disarmament are driven by Israel’s fear of the Islamist group and accused US special envoy Thomas Barrack of protecting Israeli interests at the expense of Lebanon’s security.

“Israel will not be able to defeat us, and it will not be able to take Lebanon hostage,” he said.

Last fall, Israel decimated Hezbollah’s leadership and military capabilities with an air and ground offensive, following the group’s attacks on northern Israel — which they claimed were a show of solidarity with the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas amid the war in Gaza.

In November, Lebanon and Israel reached a US-brokered ceasefire agreement that ended a year of fighting between the Jewish state and Hezbollah.

Under the agreement, Israel was given 60 days to withdraw from southern Lebanon, allowing the Lebanese army and UN forces to take over security as Hezbollah disarms and moves away from Israel’s northern border.

However, Israel maintained troops at several posts in southern Lebanon beyond the ceasefire deadline, as its leaders aimed to reassure northern residents that it was safe to return home.

Jerusalem has continued carrying out strikes targeting remaining Hezbollah activity, with Israeli leaders accusing the group of maintaining combat infrastructure, including rocket launchers — decrying “blatant violations of understandings between Israel and Lebanon.”