Reports continue to surface about Lebanon’s attempts to disarm Hezbollah. Despite the reports, however, it is not clear if any Hezbollah weapons have actually been collected or destroyed by the Lebanese Armed Forces.
Lebanon’s army had destroyed so many Hezbollah weapons, it ran out of explosives to destroy more, Reuters reported last week.
“Lebanon’s army has blown up so many Hezbollah arms caches that it has run out of explosives, as it races to meet a year-end deadline to disarm the Shi’ite militia in the south of the country under a cease-fire agreed with Israel, two sources told Reuters,” the report said.
Like the old Wendy’s commercial, one might as well say: “Where’s the beef?” Where is the evidence of Lebanon collecting any weapons?
Last month, “the commander of the Lebanese Army presented the government in Beirut with the first report on the implementation of Hezbollah’s disarmament plan, in accordance with the government’s August 2025 decisions on the state’s arms monopoly,” the Meir Amit Intelligence and Information Center reported.
“According to the US military, the Lebanese Army has cleared nearly 10,000 rockets and 400 missiles since the ceasefire in late November 2024,” the report said. “However, ‘sources’ claimed that the Army only acts against sites that have been reported to UNIFIL and to the Ceasefire Monitoring Committee for fear of clashing with Hezbollah, which could lead to civil war.”
The Lebanese army is submitting a report on weapons control, Saudi-based news channel Al Arabiya reported Thursday.
“The Lebanese government is preparing today, Thursday, to discuss the army’s second monthly report on its mission south of the Litani River, in a session chaired by President Joseph Aoun in the presence of Prime Minister Nawaf Salam,” the report said. “The agenda includes 35 items, the first of which is the army’s report on limiting weapons.”
The army’s report will “include information on the completion of the deployment plan in southern Litani, with the first phase of the plan to end by the end of this year,” Al Arabiya reported, adding that the second phase of the weapons collection plan is limited to the area north of the Litani River.
People familiar with the matter said the “army’s second report on the weapons control plan focuses on its operations south of the Litani River, while the remaining part of it is allocated to the area north of the Litani River,” the report said.
Hezbollah has confirmed that it supports the army’s plan, Al Arabiya reported.
This seems to contradict Hezbollah's statements saying the group will not disarm.
“The [Hezbollah] party is cooperating with the army in the area south of the Litani River,” the report said.
MP Mohammad Raad, who represents Hezbollah’s interests in the Lebanese parliament, said the group was working with the Lebanese army commander. He “recently visited the army command,” the report said. “Sources close to Hezbollah pointed out that ‘the party’s position is the same as that of Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri, which is to benefit from the experience of maritime demarcation, that is, to keep the ‘mechanism’ committee while using experts and technicians when needed.’”
Hezbollah may be concerned that Israel could increase airstrikes in Lebanon. Israel is concerned that Hezbollah is rebuilding its strength.
How can both claims be true? How can the Lebanese army be disarming Hezbollah while the group is also rearming and getting stronger?
“Lebanese authorities confirmed their readiness to negotiate as an alternative to war, but [Jerusalem] has not yet announced an official position on negotiations,” Al Arabiya reported.
Beirut is apparently in touch with Washington and Cairo in an effort to avoid a crisis, the report said.
“According to Israeli reports, US envoy Tom Barrack gave the army a deadline ending at the end of November to bring about a change in the situation regarding Hezbollah’s weapons, saying, ‘If this does not happen, Israel will be able to launch attacks and the United States will understand that,’” it added.
Al-Akhbar Accuses Israel of Mobilizing for Lebanon Attack
What does Beirut-based newspaper Al Akhbar, a pro-Hezbollah media outlet, say? Not much in terms of details.
In a report about Tony Blair on Thursday, it said Israel was leaking details about Hezbollah’s capabilities.
“For the second week in a row, the Israeli political and media machine continued its mobilization of public opinion within the entity, and of the regional and international diplomatic atmosphere, in what appears to be a prelude to launching a new aggression against Lebanon, under the pretext that Hezbollah is working to restore its military capabilities and has returned to pose a threat to Israel’s security,” the report said.
Officials in “Lebanon appear helpless and [are trying to contain any potential escalation by emphasizing the negotiating intentions that President Joseph Aoun continues to stress in his meetings, knowing that nothing is decided yet, neither in terms of form nor framework, and there is no Lebanese agreement except on the principle of general negotiation,” Al Akhbar reported
In short, there is no real evidence that Hezbollah is disarming. The notion of “trust but verify” would work here, but there is no verification. Hezbollah also cannot be trusted.