Hezbollah Rejects US-Brokered Israel-Lebanon Security Deal as Surrender

Hezbollah’s leader Naim Qassem publicly rejected a United States-brokered security agreement between Lebanon and Israel on Saturday, just one day after it was formally signed, branding the deal an act of submission to Israeli demands.

Qassem Calls Deal a Surrender

Addressing the agreement, Qassem issued a firm statement declaring it “null and void”, accusing the Lebanese government of making unilateral concessions that undermined the country’s sovereignty. He argued that provisions tying Israel’s military withdrawal to Hezbollah’s disarmament effectively legitimised Israel’s continued military presence in Lebanese territory and crossed “all red lines”.

Hezbollah, he insisted, would maintain its armed resistance regardless of the agreement: “We did not leave the battlefield in the most difficult circumstances, and we will not leave it.”

What the Agreement Entails

The framework finalised on Friday outlines a phased Israeli withdrawal from select areas of southern Lebanon, paired with the deployment of the Lebanese army in those regions. However, Israeli forces would be permitted to remain within an expanded security zone temporarily, pending further implementation of the deal’s provisions.

Fresh Israeli Drone Strike in Southern Lebanon

In a demonstration of ongoing hostilities despite repeated ceasefires and agreements, Israel conducted a drone strike targeting Nabatieh al-Fawqa in Lebanon’s south on Saturday — an area falling outside the security zone mapped and published by Israel as territory its troops would continue to control.

The Israeli military confirmed the strike to Reuters, stating a drone was deployed due to the absence of ground troops in the immediate vicinity. Officials said the strike targeted an individual deemed a threat to Israeli forces, offering no further details or supporting evidence.

Wider Regional Context

More than one million Lebanese civilians have been displaced from their homes as a result of a conflict running parallel to the broader Iran war. Both Hezbollah and Iran have asserted that Washington committed to ending hostilities in Lebanon as part of a memorandum of understanding signed two weeks prior, aimed at concluding the wider regional war.

Qassem stated that this Iran-US memorandum, which guarantees Lebanon’s territorial integrity, should serve as the proper foundation for resolving the conflict — not the Washington-brokered framework signed on Friday.