Israel Values Lebanon's Efforts to Disarm Hezbollah as Not Enough

JAKARTA - Israel considers the Lebanese authorities' efforts to disarm the Hezbollah group to be far from sufficient, after the Lebanese military previously stated that it had taken control of the south.

In line with US demands, the Lebanese government has sought to limit weapons under state control since Lebanon's Iranian-backed Shiite Muslim group, Hezbollah, was weakened by the 2006 war with Israel.

The Lebanese army said on Thursday that the objectives of the first phase of their plan had been achieved "effectively and visibly", and that they had secured the territory under their authority south of the Litani river - excluding positions still occupied by Israeli forces, Al Arabiya reported from Reuters (9/1).

Following the military statement, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Hezbollah must be completely disarmed, citing the US-mediated ceasefire with Lebanon in November 2024.

Although these efforts by the Lebanese government and military are "an encouraging start but still far from sufficient, as evidenced by Hezbollah's efforts to rearm and rebuild its terror infrastructure with Iranian support."

The disarmament of Hezbollah "is essential for the security of Israel and the future of Lebanon," he said.

Israel is known to have carried out almost daily attacks in the south and sometimes wider in Lebanon, accusing Hezbollah of trying to rebuild infrastructure and Beirut of failing to enforce a 2024 ceasefire agreement.

There was no immediate comment from Hezbollah, which says it has respected the ceasefire in the south and that the agreement does not apply to other Lebanese territory.

The Lebanese army had previously set a year-end deadline to clear non-state weaponry from the south, before moving on to other areas of the country.

In its statement, the army said there was still work to be done to clear unexploded munitions and tunnels.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said the deployment of troops in the south was aimed at affirming the principle that "the decision of war and peace" belongs only to the state, and "to prevent the use of Lebanese territory as a starting point for any hostile action."

However, he added that sustainable stability still depends on handling key issues, the main of which is "the continued Israeli occupation of part of Lebanon and the establishment of a buffer zone in it."

Hezbollah has been involved in various conflicts with Israel since its establishment in 1982. They retained their weapons after the end of the 1975-1990 Lebanese civil war, and used them against Israeli forces occupying the south until 2000.

Meanwhile, the Lebanese military, which receives US support, remains outside the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel.

Separately, the UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, said it was "very pleasing to see" the military had "taken operational control in the south of the Litani."

"This is undeniable progress. Hard work awaits ahead," he wrote on X.

A Lebanese security source told Reuters that the military statement indicated that no group would be able to launch an attack from southern Lebanon.

Hezbollah fired to support its Palestinian ally Hamas at the start of the 2023 Gaza war, and exchanged fire on the border until Israel launched an offensive in 2024, killing the group's leaders and destroying most of its weapons.