MP Mohammad Raad, the head of Hezbollah’s political wing, has given a new interview with al-Modon in which he set out “red lines” related to ways in which Hezbollah would agree to enter into talks on disarmament and the granting of a full state monopoly on arms.
Raad said that any comprehensive security agreement would require Lebanon to have a sovereign authority, and that the “red lines” regarding the talks are effectively unchanged from where they’ve always been.
Hezbollah has long linked such talks to Israel withdrawing from the entirety of Lebanese territory, Israel stopping its regular attacks on Lebanese territory. Raad added that the Lebanese military should be present in the country south of the Litani River as well.
Hezbollah MP Mohammad Raad | Image from X
Raad didn’t even insist that Israel fully withdraw first before disarmament talks could begin, a position Hezbollah has sometimes been framed as taking. He suggested that they were ready to engage once a guarantee was reached that Israel would fully withdraw and stop attacking, provided that guarantee didn’t provide any concessions to Israel. He further accused Lebanon of “compromising sovereignty and legitimizing occupation” with its ongoing talks and concessions.
Raad’s position is likely a non-starter with Israel at any rate, which has eagerly engaged in talks with Lebanon but establishes “red lines” that Israel wouldn’t have to stop attacking, wouldn’t have to withdraw, and that the deals would effectively center on promising Hezbollah would stop resisting the occupation.
During the interview, Raad also defended Hezbollah’s attempted defense of Ali al-Taher Ridge, and accused the Lebanese government of unsuccessfully trying to drag them into the framework trilateral agreement with the US and Israel.
