Rubio spoke with Lebanon's Aoun about confiscation of explosives from Hezbollah, US official says
Rubio urged Aoun to hold accountable those who ordered, financed, and directed the shipment of of hundreds of kilograms of explosives from Hezbollah.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on Thursday to discuss the confiscation of several hundred kilograms of explosives from Hezbollah, according to a State Department official reported by The National UAE. Rubio urged that returning the seized explosives to Hezbollah should be out of the question and called for accountability for those who ordered, financed, and directed the shipment, the Jerusalem Post reports.
The National UAE reports that Rubio also advocated for direct military-to-military communication between Lebanese and Israeli forces to reduce the risk of clashes and miscalculation. Additionally, he criticized Lebanon’s 1955 Boycott Law, which the US official described as an impractical tool used for politicized prosecutions that deter peace efforts with Israel.
Hezbollah has admitted the explosives belonged to the group and demanded their return, with Arutz Sheva - Israel National News reporting the group claimed the materials were intended for attacks on Israeli forces. Ajel English noted that Hezbollah admitted owning the truckload of explosives seized in Dahr al-Baydar, while a Hezbollah lawmaker told Haaretz the group intended the explosives for attacks on Israeli troops.
Brief written by urgent.news from Jerusalem Post, The National UAE, Haaretz, Arutz Sheva - Israel National News, Ajel English — 5 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
