President Joseph Aoun arriving at a Cabinet meeting in Baabda, Aug. 5, 2025. (Credit: Mohammad Yassine / L'Orient-Le Jour)
BEIRUT — President Joseph Aoun on Monday welcomed the memorandum of understanding between Iran and the United States and its recognition of "Lebanese specificity," saying he hoped the agreement would lead to "concrete measures that put a definitive end to the cycle of violence."
"I welcome what this memorandum contains regarding respect for Lebanon's particularity and the recognition that Lebanon's stability and security are an integral part of any serious effort to establish stability in the region, after the sacrifices and heavy burdens borne by the Lebanese during the past period," Aoun said, in a statement relayed by the presidency on X.
"The Lebanese people, especially those living in areas that have suffered attacks and destruction and who have lost loved ones, livelihoods, and homes, now hope that these understandings will be translated into practical steps that put a definitive end to the cycle of violence," he added, thanking "all the countries and parties that contributed to the conclusion of this memorandum."
The head of state also thanked “all the states and parties that contributed to the drafting of this memorandum, as well as all those who worked to include Lebanon in efforts to end the escalation and halt military operations on the various fronts, aware of the extent of the suffering endured by the Lebanese people in recent months.”
He concluded by expressing his hope that this development “will constitute the beginning of a broader process strengthening stability in the region, preserving the sovereignty of states and the rights of their people, and allowing the Lebanese to dedicate themselves to rebuilding what has been destroyed and resuming normal life within a safe and stable state.”
Berri thanks Tehran and Washington
For his part, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri also welcomed the announcement, thanking Iran and the U.S. for including a clause calling for a halt to Israeli aggression against Lebanon.
In a statement, Berri praised "the efforts and initiatives undertaken by Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt to reach this agreement, which, through its provisions, lays the foundation for security and stability in the region, including in Lebanon."
Berri also thanked Iran, the United States and their leaders for "including in the agreed memorandum a fundamental and binding clause on halting Israeli aggression against all of Lebanon, to preserve its sovereignty over its entire territory, without jeopardizing the independence and freedom of its national and sovereign decision, and to avoid falling into the trap set by the Israeli political echelon led by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu."'
Hezbollah thanks Iran
Contacted by our publication, a source within Hezbollah expressed its gratitude to Iran, “which was able to reach a solid agreement, knowing that a return to calm in Lebanon was an essential condition for this agreement.”
“The Lebanese government is therefore called upon to learn from a process that has borne fruit and to take advantage of the presence of the Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri,on the political scene to achieve concrete results,” the source added.
How does Hezbollah intend to leverage Sunday’s agreement on the local stage? The source from Hezbollah stated that the militia does not intend to bring down the Salam government. “We have more important issues to address, such as unifying the Lebanese position in order to move towards indirect negotiations,” the source said, accusing the government of “giving in to American pressure and making gratuitous concessions to the Israelis.” “Perhaps we should consider changing the composition of the Lebanese negotiating delegation in Washington,” the source suggested.
In statements to Reuters, a Hezbollah official asserted that his party has not conducted any operations since the announcement of the agreement.
Former Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Joumblatt told L'Orient-Le Jour that he "does not believe" in the Iran-U.S. agreement reached on Sunday. "I will believe it the day Israel stops bombing Lebanon and demolishing houses in the south."
When asked about the agreement's impact on the ongoing negotiations between Beirut and Tel Aviv in Washington, Joumblatt said, "I don't believe it either. We can't imagine pilot zones without being certain of an Israeli withdrawal. We'll see if the Lebanese delegation is firm on this point on June 22 [the date of the next round of negotiations in Washington]. In the meantime, we are waiting for the establishment of new shelters given the growing number of displaced people," the Druze leader concluded.
The United States and Iran reached an agreement on Monday to immediately end the war in the Middle East on all fronts, including Lebanon, with a signing ceremony scheduled for Friday in Geneva. The agreement was announced Monday morning by Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, a mediator in the war, and was confirmed shortly after by Washington and Tehran.
