President Joseph Aoun, Speaker Nabih Berri and PM Nawaf Salam are yet to receive Hezbollah’s response to the Lebanese amendments to U.S. envoy Tom Barrack’s paper, which were prepared by a tripartite committee after intensive meetings at the Baabda Palace, Al-Jadeed TV said.

Hezbollah is expected to deliver the response on Friday or Saturday to Berri, Al-Jadeed added, noting that the joint presidential committee would meet again after receiving the official response in order to finalize Lebanon’s formal response.

Informed sources meanwhile told the TV network that Hezbollah is demanding “real guarantees that Israel would abide by the new paper.”

“It has concerns over Barrack’s paper and considers it a capitulation paper based on the previous experiences with Israel, which did not commit to agreements, Resolution 1701 or the ceasefire arrangements,” the sources added, noting that “the atmosphere is uneasy and marred by cautious anticipation pending Hezbollah’s response.”

Al-Jadeed also revealed that Berri had met with Aoun over a dinner banquet on Wednesday evening and that the discussions tackled Barrack’s paper, Hezbollah’s response and the file of appointments.

Lebanon is close to finalising its formal response to Washington’s proposal aimed at resolving tensions with Israel, as intensive political consultations continue ahead of US envoy Thomas Barak’s return to Beirut early next week.

Sources told The New Arab that internal disagreements remain, particularly over the status of Hezbollah’s weapons and how any disarmament would be implemented, amid ongoing negotiations.

The country’s top leaders have held discussions with Hezbollah, notably through Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, amid US pressure to resolve the issue of weapons outside state control.

It comes amid a series of Israeli military attacks in southern Lebanon this week and the assassination of an alleged Iranian Quds Force “operative” near Beirut on Thursday, widely seen as an Israeli message to Beirut over delays in disarming Hezbollah.

Barak’s proposal, presented during his visit to Beirut on 19 June, reportedly calls for arms to be restricted to the Lebanese state, financial reforms, crackdowns on Hezbollah-linked institutions – such as the Al-Qard Al-Hassan foundation – improved relations with Syria, and finalising border demarcation.

Official Lebanese sources told The New Arab that the response was nearing completion and that Beirut was prepared to affirm the principle of a state monopoly over arms, so long as Israel withdraws from all occupied areas in southern Lebanon and halts its attacks on the country.

According to sources, Lebanon is under significant diplomatic pressure, with messages directed to President Joseph Aoun urging him to seize the moment and pursue a diplomatic path, warning that the alternative would be renewed war.

Sources also indicate that there are hopes that Berri, the long-time leader of the Shia-dominated Amal Movement, can persuade Hezbollah to accept the proposal and avert further escalation.

Weapons issue remains key sticking point

The main points of contention centre on Hezbollah’s weapons, the timeline of its disarmament, and how the handover would be enforced.

Hezbollah insists that the matter is a domestic issue to be discussed through a national defence strategy and opposes deadlines imposed by the US and a withdrawal from southern Lebanon, citing distrust of Israel. It also demands firm guarantees of full Israeli withdrawal from occupied Lebanese territories before discussing any disarmament.

A Hezbollah MP, who did not want to be named, told The New Arab that “the arms issue is an internal Lebanese matter to be addressed within a national strategy, and threats or pressure won’t affect us. We have rights we won’t give up, and the Lebanese state must also defend them”.

He rejected claims in Reuters that Hezbollah was considering handing over some of its weapons, including drones and rockets, while keeping only light arms and anti-tank missiles.

The parliamentarian said there had been past discussions with the state about heavy weapons and drones – particularly south of the Litani River – but the priority now was ending Israeli aggression and occupation.

“The role of the weapons is to resist occupation,” the MP added. “We won’t give them up while threats persist and with no guarantees Israel will stop its violations. Even after the ceasefire agreement came into effect on 27 November, Israel committed over 2,000 violations, causing many casualties.”

He confirmed previous talks with General Joseph Aoun on restricting arms to the state and praised Aoun’s handling of the issue as a domestic matter. “We reject any external pressure from the US or Israel aimed at ending the resistance,” he said.

Sources told The New Arab that discussions around Hezbollah’s arms predated the Israel-Iran war, and that there had been internal debate within the group about transferring some heavy weaponry and ballistic missiles to Iran.

However, the plan was shelved due to shifting developments following the Iran-Israel 12-day war. Talks are now said to be focused on a gradual weapons handover although no final decision has been made on this within Hezbollah.

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Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem said Israel needs to comply with a November ceasefire before any further discussions could be held.

BEIRUT – Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem said on July 6 that his group will not surrender nor lay down its weapons in response to Israeli threats, despite pressure on the Lebanese militants to disarm.

“This threat will not make us accept surrender,” he said in a televised speech to thousands of his supporters in the southern suburbs of Beirut, a Hezbollah stronghold, during the Shi’ite Muslim religious commemoration of Ashura.

Lebanese leaders who took office in the aftermath of a war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2024 have repeatedly vowed a state monopoly on bearing arms while demanding that Israel comply with a November ceasefire that ended the fighting .

Mr Qassem, who succeeded long-time leader Hassan Nasrallah whom Israel killed last September, said the group’s fighters would not abandon their arms and asserted that Israel’s “aggression” must first stop.

His speech came as US envoy Tom Barrack was expected in Beirut on July 7.

Lebanese authorities are due to deliver a response to Mr Barrack’s request for Iran-backed Hezbollah to be disarmed by the end of the year, according to a Lebanese official who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Lebanese authorities say they have been dismantling Hezbollah’s military infrastructure in the south, near the Israeli border.

Israel has continued to strike Lebanon despite the November ceasefire, claiming to hit Hezbollah targets and accusing Beirut of not doing enough to disarm the group.

According to the ceasefire agreement, Hezbollah is to pull its fighters back north of the Litani river, some 30km from the Israeli frontier.

Israel was to withdraw its troops from all of Lebanon, but has kept them deployed in five points it deems strategic .

Mr Qassem said Israel must abide by the ceasefire agreement, “withdraw from the occupied territories, stop its aggression… release the prisoners” detained during war in 2024 , and that reconstruction in Lebanon must begin.

Only then, according to the Hezbollah chief, “will we be ready for the second stage, which is to discuss national security and defence strategy”.

Supporters dressed in black for Ashura marched through Beirut’s southern suburbs before Mr Qassem’s speech, waving Hezbollah banners as well as national Lebanese, Palestinian and Iranian flags.

Some also carried posters of slain leader Nasrallah.

In his remarks, Mr Qassem said his movement “will not accept normalisation… with the Israeli enemy”, after Israel’s top diplomat said his government was “interested” in such a move.

Lebanon, which is technically still at war with Israel, did not comment.

Syria, which was also mentioned by Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, said it was “premature” to discuss normalisation. AFP

US special envoy to Syria Tom Barrack did not issue any “warnings” regarding Hezbollah’s disarmament, Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said on Wednesday, adding that stability in his country relied on Israel halting its violations.

His comments come as Lebanon prepares a response to Barrack’s proposal on disarming Hezbollah. The US envoy is expected to return to Beirut next week to hear from Lebanese officials.

“Things are moving positively with President Aoun and Speaker Berri,” Salam said at Lebanon’s Economic and Social Council.

While stressing Lebanon’s commitment to addressing the issue of non-state arms, Salam said Washington must also provide guarantees that Israel will cease its attacks and withdraw its remaining forces.

Under the November ceasefire deal that ended more than a year of fighting, Israel was expected to fully withdraw from southern Lebanon. However, it has retained a military presence in five strategic positions along the border.

The deal also calls for Hezbollah to hand over its weapons to the Lebanese state, which in turn must strengthen its presence in the south and along Lebanon’s borders.

Hezbollah has laid out its own conditions, which include full Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon, the release of Lebanese detainees held in Israel, and the allocation of funds to begin reconstructing the war-damaged areas, many of them Shia-majority.

“Barrack presented his vision to us – it was not framed as a warning. We are currently preparing a set of ideas and responses to share with him,” said Salam.

He added that stability could not be achieved while Israel continues to violate the ceasefire agreement. Israel has said it will not pull back its troops until Hezbollah’s armed wing is fully dismantled.

“From this standpoint, we are intensifying political and diplomatic pressure to implement [UN Security Council] Resolution 1701, and we are providing everything necessary to ensure the dignified return of our people and to rebuild what the [Israeli] aggression has destroyed,” Salam said.

He reiterated that, while demanding Israel halt its violations, the Lebanese government is also continuing efforts to extend full state sovereignty and ensure it alone holds weapons within Lebanon.

UN Security Council Resolution 1701, passed in 2006, forms the legal basis of last year’s ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.

Barrack’s demands are rooted in this framework, but the US envoy also urged Lebanon to engage in talks with Syria to formally demarcate their border and to implement sweeping financial reforms.

Lebanon has been mired in a devastating financial and economic crisis for nearly six years, which has crippled key sectors including banking, energy, and public services, and wiped out the savings of millions.

“Financial and economic reforms constitute a fundamental pillar of the national recovery process. There can be no sustainable public services, no real investment opportunities, and no possibility of recovery without financial and economic stability,” said Salam.

The prime minister also confirmed ongoing cooperation with Damascus on securing the shared border, curbing smuggling, and facilitating the return of Syrian refugees – estimated to number around two million in Lebanon.

On Tuesday, Lebanese Foreign Minister Youssef Rajji said Beirut was coordinating with Syria to strengthen border security and officially demarcate the 394-kilometre frontier, which has long been used by smugglers.