Rubio presses Lebanon on confiscation of weapons from Hezbollah
Lebanon's president reaffirms the commitment to bring all arms under state control.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio urged Lebanese President Joseph Aoun to prevent Hezbollah from receiving explosives seized from the group, while advocating for direct military communication between Lebanon and Israel to mitigate the risk of clashes. In a phone conversation on Thursday, Rubio spoke about the confiscation of several hundred kilograms of explosives from Hezbollah, according to a State Department official.
He emphasized the need for accountability of those who ordered, financed, and directed the shipment, stating that the explosives should not be returned to Hezbollah. Rubio also criticized Lebanon's 1955 Boycott Law, which the official said is used for politically motivated prosecutions that hinder peace efforts with Israel. He stressed that the law is impractical and called for direct military-to-military communication between Lebanese and Israeli forces to prevent miscalculations and to advance the sequence of implementing the Trilateral Framework.
Signed in June, the framework outlines a phased process for the Lebanese army to regain state authority and disarm non-state militias, including Hezbollah, and for Israel to gradually withdraw from Lebanese territory.
Written by urgent.news from The National Business's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
This story
This is one outlet's version. Read the fullest account.
