Lindsey Graham accuses Hamas and Hezbollah of rearming

U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham on Sunday accused Hamas and Hezbollah of rearming during a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Graham, known for his close ties to Israel, regularly issues threats against the Lebanese party, as a fragile cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah took effect in November 2024, after two months of open warfare and a total of 13 months of attritional conflict.

Despite the truce, Israel continues to carry out strikes in Lebanese territory, claiming it is targeting Hezbollah. On Sunday, Israel conducted two consecutive strikes on Yater, in southern Lebanon, resulting in one death and one person seriously wounded.

In Gaza, after two years of deadly and devastating war, a cease-fire has also been observed since October in the Palestinian territory between Israel and Hamas, even as both sides accuse each other of violating the truce. Regarding its two enemies, who are allies of Iran, Israel has made dismantling their military arsenals one of its main conditions for any lasting peace.

"My impression is that Hamas is not disarming; it is rearming. My impression is that they are trying to establish their control over Gaza, not give it up. And my impression is also that Hezbollah is trying to produce more weapons."

"This is an unacceptable result," Graham added.

"In both cases, you are right," replied the prime minister, calling the senator "a great friend of Israel and a dear personal friend."

Since the fragile cease-fire took effect on Oct. 10 in Gaza, mediators have been calling for increased efforts to move to the next phase of an American peace plan launched by President Donald Trump. This phase calls for the disarmament of Hamas, the progressive withdrawal of the Israeli army from the entire territory, the establishment of a transitional authority, and the deployment of an international force. On Saturday, the United States and the guarantors of the cease-fire — Egypt, Qatar and Turkey — called on Israel and Hamas to "meet their obligations" and to "show restraint" in the Gaza Strip. For its part, Hamas is calling for an end to Israeli "violations" of the cease-fire. On Friday, six people, including two children, were killed in an Israeli bombing of a school serving as a shelter for displaced people, according to Gaza Civil Defense, a relief agency under Hamas.