Yossi Schwartz ISL (RCIT Section in Israel/Occupied Palestine) 09.08.2025
With the conclusion of the meeting of the Lebanese government on Tuesday and the decision to disarm Hezbollah, the country entered a critical stage: the implementation of the plan to disarm Hezbollah. At this stage, it will become clear whether Hezbollah will continue to be an armed organization, and whether the Lebanese government will be able to prove that it has the power to disarm Hezbollah. In the plan, known as the “American plan”: a detailed timetable, the achievements required at each stage, and the horizon that Lebanon can expect upon its completion.
This program, the implementation of which is scheduled to be completed by December 31, 2025. However, while the Lebanese government has announced the approval of the plan, it remains unclear how Hezbollah will respond and whether his Shiite partner – the Amal Movement led by Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri – will align himself with the recalcitrant line presented by Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem; And especially if the Lebanese army is prepared for a violent and direct confrontation with Hezbollah. The principled positions were formulated at the beginning of the year, when President Joseph Aoun declared in his inaugural speech that “all weapons in the country will be in the hands of the government” and that there would be no unlicensed weapons. In response to this statement, Hezbollah made it clear that disarmament is a “red line” and that any discussion of this issue will be held only within the framework of a comprehensive dialogue on a “national defense strategy.” It hinted that the organization is not relinquishing its status as a national “protective force.” And as Qassem asked in his speech on Wednesday: “Where is the country that will keep the disaster away from Lebanon, and where is the army that will guard its borders?”
Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem spoke and rejected the legitimacy of the disarmament decision. It should be remembered that during the Second Lebanon War, when the Zionist army conquered all of southern Lebanon, the Lebanese army did not fight, and only Hezbollah expelled Israel from Lebanon in 2000. Hezbollah indeed received a blow when its historic leader Hassan Nasrallah was assassinated, and the armistice agreement with Israel, under pressure from Iran, weakened it. Still, in the meantime, it has rebuilt its power. Aoun’s position, which serves the interests of American and Israeli imperialism, is supported by most of the Lebanese bourgeoisie. But on the other hand, for decades, Hezbollah was considered the “resistance” in the ideological triangle at the heart of the state – “the state, the army, and the resistance.” This triangle ensured that the organization would be seen as an integral part of the foundations of the state’s sovereignty. The president’s statement was the first time that the organization’s status as a military force vital to Lebanon’s security was publicly revoked.
President Aoun, as we have already explained, when he came to power, is nothing but a Quisling; Lebanon under his leadership will be a prey for the Zionist monster, and to American imperialism.