'Israel has an interest in Lebanon joining the circle of normalization,' Sa'ar tells Barrot

BEIRUT — Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar said on X that he spoke to his French counterpart, Jean-Noël Barrot — expected in Beirut Thursday — conveying the message that Hezbollah is obstructing any efforts to normalize relations between Lebanese and Israel.

He also called on the Lebanese government to take action against the party, which he said is "serving he Iranian regime's interests."

"Regarding Lebanon, I stressed that since March 2nd, Israel has been attacked from Lebanese territory more than 2,000 times with missiles and drones," he said.

"Israel has an interest in Lebanon joining the circle of normalization and peace in the region. The obstacle to this is Hezbollah. The Lebanese government must take meaningful action against Hezbollah on all fronts: weapons, sources of funding and financial infrastructure, legal measures against its leadership, its social and educational infrastructure, economic benefits (licenses), and more," Sa'ar wrote.

Notably, the Lebanese Cabinet passed a decision in August 2025 which dictated the enforcement of an arms monopoly plan submitted by the Lebanese Army. The army had announced the completion of its first phase and began presenting the second phase to the government before the war erupted. On March 2 — the day the war began — the Cabinet met and announced a decision banning Hezbollah's military and security activity. And on March 5, the government prohibited any activity by Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) on its territory.

"Israel is committed to defending itself and its citizens against this terror state that has taken over Lebanon and is acting according to the Iranian regime’s interests," Sa'ar concluded his message on X.

Israeli indiscriminate attacks in Lebanon have killed nearly 1,000 people across the country, including women and children, and forcibly displaced over a million people from their homes.

Regarding the war with Iran, which has blocked the Strait of Hormuz, Sa'ar pointed out that this "is not an American or Israeli issue — it's a global one." "This is naval terrorism that harms the global economy. It began with the Houthis in the Red Sea, and now the Iranian regime itself is carrying it out. The international community’s de facto acceptance of this grave phenomenon will encourage harm to the freedom of navigation and global economy, and it will spread to additional maritime arenas. This is a dramatic undermining of the world order," he said.

On the war with Iran, Sa'ar specifically noted the effectively blocked Strait of Hormuz, which he pointed out "is not an American or Israeli issue — it's a global one."

"This is naval terrorism that harms the world economy. It began with the Houthis in the Red Sea, and now the Iranian regime itself is carrying it out. International inaction will encourage further attacks on freedom of navigation and the global economy and may spread to other maritime areas. This is a dramatic undermining of the world order," he said.

Iranian threats against Israeli-U.S. interests in the area have effectively blocked the Strait of Hormuz in the wake of the war launched on Feb. 28 by Israel and the United States, at a time when Tehran and Washington were in the middle of negotiations.