In a televised speech on December 28, leader Naim Qassem said that the Lebanese government's promotion of arms monopoly at the present time "serves the interests of the US and Israel", who want to end the existence of the resistance forces in Lebanon.
Therefore, we will not force our fighters to disarm in the context of ongoing aggressive actions, when some southern areas are still occupied by Israel. We believe that such a move is unreasonable," Mr. Qassem emphasized.
Mr. Qassem's statement was made in response to the plan of the Lebanese government, which is expected to deploy a campaign to disarm armed forces believed to be illegal, including Hezbollah operating north of the Litani River, from January 2026, after the army established control in the southern areas.
Mr. Qassem called on the Lebanese government to consider postponing the disarmament plan, and warned that this campaign "could lead to an internal conflict". "The Lebanese army must not be turned into police for Israel" - Hezbollah leader noted.
Previously, on December 20, Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said that the country is ready to move to phase two of the plan to disarm the paramilitary forces, expanding to areas south of the Litani River. Mr. Salam also called on the international community to support the Lebanese army in this task.
The disarmament plan was put forward after a working session between Prime Minister Salam and Mr. Simon Karam, head of the Lebanese civilian negotiation delegation in the committee monitoring the ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel.
However, since the agreement took effect, the two sides have continuously accused each other of violating, in the context of Israel's public suspicion of the Lebanese army's ability to disarm Hezbollah.
For its part, Israel has repeatedly urged Lebanon to fully implement its commitments in the ceasefire agreement, and warned that it will act on its own if it does not take specific measures to contain Hezbollah.
