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U.S. Ambassador to Beirut Michel Issa said Hezbollah laying down its weapons would make it easier to pressure Israel to withdraw from Lebanese territory.
Issa made the remarks after meeting Druze religious leader Sami Abi al-Muna at the Druze headquarters in Beirut’s Verdun district, according to Lebanon’s state-run NNA news agency.
The two discussed political and security developments in Lebanon and the wider region.
Issa said Lebanese people were in agreement that Hezbollah should disarm and argued that weapons should be held only by the state.
Asked what the U.S. would do if Hezbollah refused to give up its weapons, Issa replied, “We are waiting.”
He said Washington had been calling on Hezbollah to disarm for more than a year and a half, adding that such a move would make it easier to pressure Israel to withdraw from Lebanese territory.
Issa said Hezbollah’s refusal to disarm was making the situation more difficult.
Addressing continued Israeli attacks on Lebanon despite the ceasefire, Issa said Washington was discussing the issue with Israel and pressing for the attacks to be reduced.
Abi al-Muna called on the international community, particularly the U.S., to support Lebanon in strengthening its sovereignty and pursuing development.
He said Israel’s plan was based on establishing dominance in southern Lebanon, expanding and taking control of territory.
Abi al-Muna said peace could not be achieved by violating international resolutions and sovereignty or by occupying airspace, waters and land.
He also addressed developments in Syria’s southern Sweida province, saying a “bloody and planned project” was unfolding there.
Abi al-Muna called for events in Sweida not to be repeated and said Druze communities should not be forced to pay the price for regional disputes.
U.S. Special Envoy for Syria Tom Barrack presented Beirut on June 19, 2025, with a U.S. proposal making the consolidation of all weapons under state control a priority.
Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem said on July 30 that disarmament was an internal Lebanese matter and that Hezbollah would not give up its weapons for Israel.
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