Lebanese Hezbollah: No ceasefire without Israeli withdrawal

Shafaq News- Beirut

Hezbollah on Thursday rejected the US-backed ceasefire framework announced in Washington, ruling out any agreement that links disarmament to a halt in Israeli attacks before Israel withdraws from Lebanon.

In a statement, Secretary-General Naim Qassem stressed that any ceasefire must apply to all Lebanese territory and not separate southern Lebanon from the rest of the country, while any arrangement allowing Israel to continue military operations elsewhere in Lebanon would also be unacceptable.

A day earlier, Washington announced a conditional ceasefire framework following a fourth round of direct talks between Lebanese and Israeli officials, which Qassem described as a humiliating process that serves Israeli interests. The agreement calls for Hezbollah to halt attacks and withdraw its fighters from areas south of the Litani River, while parts of southern Lebanon would be placed under the control of the Lebanese Army. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun later clarified that implementation could begin within 24 hours of final approval by all concerned parties and the receipt of guarantees on compliance.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz, meanwhile, stated that military operations would continue and that Israeli forces would remain in wide areas of southern Lebanon until Hezbollah halts attacks on “northern Israel” and withdraws its fighters from areas south of the Litani River.

Qassem rejected that sequence, and Hezbollah had “given no commitment” to stop resisting Israeli attacks. He added that any agreement must begin with a full Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory, followed by the deployment of the Lebanese Army south of the Litani River, alongside the return of displaced residents, the release of prisoners, and reconstruction efforts.

“As long as occupation exists, resistance continues.”