Hezbollah Confident Iran Will Not Sign Nuclear Deal if Israel Remains in Lebanon

JAKARTA - The militant group Hezbollah said on Tuesday it believed Iran would not sign a final nuclear deal with the United States unless Israel withdrew from Lebanon, while Iran's top diplomat said the continued presence of Israeli forces in Lebanon would be considered a violation of the Washington-Tehran memorandum of understanding.

Israeli forces still occupy parts of southern Lebanon they seized in a three-month-long air and ground campaign against Hezbollah, which began after the Iran-backed group fired on Israel on March 2 to support Tehran.

Fighting in Lebanon has significantly eased after the announcement of the Iran-US memorandum of understanding but has not stopped completely, and Israel says troops will remain in the south of the country.

Hezbollah has objected to Israel's continued occupation.

On Tuesday, the group's media office said it understood Iran would demand Israel's withdrawal as part of the next round of talks with the US, which will begin after the two formally sign their memorandum of understanding on Friday.

The talks are scheduled to discuss difficult issues such as the future of Iran's nuclear program.

"We believe there will be no nuclear deal between Iran and the United States if Israel does not withdraw," the Hezbollah media office told Reuters, the first time the group has linked Israel's withdrawal to a possible nuclear deal, as quoted by Al Arabiya (17/6).

It said Israel's withdrawal would be the result of, and not a prerequisite for, the talks.

They have also received assurances from Iran that any violation of the Lebanese ceasefire by Israel will affect the upcoming negotiations.

Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Tuesday, the end of the regional war must include the end of the conflict in Lebanon, including "the end of the occupation" of Lebanese land.

"Without the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the territories they have occupied in this war, the end of the war has not been fully achieved," he said.

Foreign Minister Araghchi added that any Israeli attack on Lebanon or continued occupation of Lebanese land "in our view, will be considered a violation of the memorandum of understanding."