Washington praises Beirut's efforts on Hezbollah issue, but expects more

BEIRUT — In a statement to Saudi channel al-Arabiya, a U.S. State Department source on Wednesday praised the progress made by the Lebanese Army in disarming Hezbollah, while calling for the process to be accelerated and for additional steps to be taken.

"The United States is encouraged by the efforts of the Lebanese Army to disarm Hezbollah, but we need the Lebanese state to do more to completely eliminate all weapons and infrastructure of Hezbollah and non-state actors across the country," the U.S. official said.

'Seize this opportunity'

While U.S. Special Envoy Tom Barrack expressed satisfaction with Lebanon's response during his visit to Beirut, some observers saw his unexpected reaction as an effort to hold Lebanon's official authorities accountable and raise the possibility of halting U.S. mediation efforts.

The State Department source, in this context, warned of the danger of allowing Hezbollah or any other "terrorist group" to rebuild its military capabilities, arguing that any negligence at this stage constitutes a "direct threat to the security of Lebanon and Israel," as well as a missed opportunity for the Lebanese state to restore its sovereignty and rebuild its institutions. "As Ambassador Barrack said in Beirut, Lebanon must seize this opportunity to move forward," the U.S. official added.

The same official also recalled the need for Lebanon to accelerate reforms in both the economic and judicial sectors, calling on the Lebanese Parliament to "quickly adopt laws on banking resolution and judicial independence."

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These statements from Washington come the day after the U.S. special envoy's visit to Beirut, where he met earlier this week with several Lebanese officials, including President Joseph Aoun, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri.

During a press briefing Tuesday evening, State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce praised Barrack, who had just completed a two-day visit to Beirut, describing him as "an outstanding person." "He has a difficult mission. He is not a man who pretends, and he said he was incredibly satisfied with the Lebanese government's response to the calls for Hezbollah's disarmament," she said.

She added: "Even if I am not going to characterize the private diplomatic conversations our officials may have, the fact is that you can listen to their own words."

Under the cease-fire agreement reached on Nov.27 to end the 13-month war between Israel and Hezbollah, the pro-Iranian militia must withdraw its fighters south of the Litani River, while Israel will withdraw completely from South Lebanon. But Hezbollah is refusing to hand over the rest of its arsenal as long as Israel occupies five border points considered "strategic."

Despite the truce in effect in Lebanon, the Israeli army has committed more than 500 violations and regularly infiltrates border villages, while continuing to carry out air strikes. These attacks have killed at least 251 people since Nov. 27, according to U.N. figures recorded by our publication.