Disarming Hezbollah and disconnecting Lebanon from the Islamic Republic of Iran could open “a door to peace, economic growth and shared opportunities” for both countries, Israel’s ambassador to the United States, Yechiel Leiter, said in an interview with the website “This is Beirut.”
Addressing Lebanese citizens, Leiter said, “We want to live with you in peace and harmony. We have no interest in your land, only in our security. We are threatened and therefore we respond, because we want to live in security, just as you do.
"We're looking for ways of pursuing peace, and at the same time, we're looking to secure our citizenry and our country. What I envision is a relationship of peace and harmony. There's no reason why there wouldn't be peace between Israel and Lebanon, between the people of Lebanon and the people of Israel. We have so much in common.
"Imagine if you lived in a country without war, without strife, without being raped by foreigners like the Islamic Republic, which is pumping money into an organization that has really robbed you of your peace in the region," he added. "So I think that we could reach a stage where Israelis are visiting Beirut, and Lebanese are visiting Jerusalem.
"Let us pray that next year, 2026, will become the year of Abraham Accords 2.0, and we will all live in peace and harmony,” the Israeli ambassador added.
Leiter past statements on Lebanon, Syria joining Abraham Accords
Leiter had previously stated in an interview with PragerU in May that Syria and Lebanon could join the Abraham Accords and normalize relations with Israel before Saudi Arabia.
“There’s no reason now why we wouldn’t be moving into accommodation with Syria and Lebanon,” he said.
The PragerU interview led to his being summoned by Attorney Eden Bar-Tal, the Director-General of the Foreign Affairs Ministry, for a hearing regarding the remarks he made during the interview.
During the interview, in addition to his comments on Lebanon and Syria, the ambassador spoke strongly against Israel's legal system, which "exhausts [Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu.
"If you call the number one Jew in the world a war criminal, then Jews are war criminals; they are like their prime minister, so why shouldn't there be antisemites?" he argued.
Amichai Stein contributed to this report.