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BEIRUT: Speaking from the Bulgarian capital on Monday, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun described the Lebanese army’s disarmament mission as “decisive” given the current circumstances.

“The Lebanese army’s mission to restrict the possession of weapons is decisive under the current circumstances, as it alone — without any external partners or forces outside the state — must extend state authority across its territory and borders, and assert full sovereignty, so that Israeli attacks on our land cease and Israel withdraws from the sites it occupies inside Lebanon,” Aoun said.

He emphasized that this mission should proceed alongside a negotiation process, which he considers “the only path to achieving our national objectives and Lebanon’s higher interests.”

He recalled that Lebanon previously engaged in over 10 negotiation rounds on such issues, with unanimous political support across factions.

The most recent of these negotiations occurred between 2020 and 2022, focusing on maritime border demarcation with Tel Aviv and, more recently, in November, efforts have aimed at halting attacks and consolidating arms under Lebanese state control.

The Lebanese president’s official talks with his Bulgarian counterpart Rumen Radev at the Bulgarian presidential palace coincided with further Israeli attacks deep into Lebanon, causing at least one fatality.

In the early hours of Monday, an Israeli drone targeted a civilian vehicle near Al-Baisariyah on the coastal road north of the Litani River, killing its driver Samir Fakih, an official with the Servants of Imam Hussain Association affiliated with Hezbollah.

Later that afternoon, Israeli drones launched airstrikes on areas in the Tyre governorate, the Rahyan hills, the areas of Qotrani and Al-Mahmoudiyeh in the Jezzine governorate, and Jabal Al-Rafi’a in Iqlim Al-Tuffah, reaching Al-Shaara in Al-Nabi Sheet in northern Bekaa.

The Israeli army spokesperson claimed that “the army, acting on intelligence information, attacked with its air force Hezbollah infrastructure in the Bekaa and southern Lebanon, used for launching rockets and for the production and storage of strategic combat equipment.”

Hezbollah MP Ali Fayyad stated that “the Israelis are escalating their field and military operations, with US support, in order to increase pressure on Lebanon and force it to submit to Israeli-US conditions.”

He accused the two powers of attempting “to transform Resolution 1701 and the ceasefire into a political and security track that goes beyond the essence of the existing resolution regarding withdrawal, border demarcation, detainees’ release, the imposition of a security agreement, normalization, and the end of hostilities, potentially leading ultimately to a peace agreement.”

Fayyad said Lebanon “will not accept such options, which would prove disastrous for its stability, sovereignty and national unity.” 

According to Lebanese and Israeli officials cited by Reuters, “Israel is pressing Lebanon’s army to be more aggressive in disarming (the Iranian-backed militant group) Hezbollah by searching (private) homes in the south for weaponry.” It added: “The Israeli demand has been rejected by Lebanon’s military leadership, who fear it would ignite civil strife and derail a disarmament strategy.”

Since the ceasefire agreement took effect on Nov. 27, 2024, until Nov. 3, 2025, Israeli attacks have resulted in at least 309 deaths and 598 injuries. Meanwhile, Israeli violations of Lebanese sovereignty have exceeded 5,163 incidents.

The military pressures were accompanied by financial and economic measures from the US, conveyed to Lebanese officials by a delegation from the US Department of the Treasury and the National Security Council at the White House.

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam stressed to the delegation on Monday “the government’s commitment to continuing the reform process, rebuilding state institutions and consolidating its sovereignty over all Lebanese territory.” The progress achieved in controlling the borders and regulating the movement of people and goods was also discussed.

The US delegation included Sebastian Gorka, deputy assistant to the president and senior director for counterterrorism; John Hurley, undersecretary of the treasury for terrorism and financial intelligence; and Rudolph Atallah, counterterrorism expert at the US National Security Council.

Salam’s media office explained that the PM “affirmed the government’s efforts in combating money laundering through promoting transparency and enforcing regulatory laws in the financial sector, with the aim of restoring confidence and ensuring compliance with international standards.”

The media office highlighted that the discussions focused on deploying the Lebanese army in southern and other regions to promote stability, reinforce state authority, and enhance control over seaports and airports.

Information circulating about the meetings of the US delegation indicated that it discussed “the executive aspect of measures to control money laundering and smuggling, and to put an end to illegal financial operations, including curbing the cash economy and halting the activities of Al-Qard Al-Hasan Association affiliated with Hezbollah.”

Salam affirmed on Sunday night that he “is striving to mobilize the necessary funds for the reconstruction of the south, and that reforms alone are not sufficient to attract investments without a sense of security.

“This requires turning the slogan of state monopoly over arms into a genuine and practical reality,” he added.

The US delegation’s visit to Lebanon is part of a regional tour that also includes Turkiye, the UAE, and Israel.

The US Department of the Treasury announced that the aim of the tour is “to pursue Iran’s financing networks in the region and prevent it from funding its military arms.”

Hurley made statements prior to his talks in Beirut in which he claimed that “Hezbollah has received around $1 billion from Iran since the end of the last Israeli war on Lebanon, and that the US is trying to seize a favorable opportunity to cut off Iranian funding to Hezbollah and push it to lay down its weapons, which would allow the Lebanese people to reclaim their country.”

The US delegation met with Aoun on Sunday evening, and a statement issued by the media office at the Presidential Palace said that “Lebanon is strictly enforcing the adopted measures to prevent money laundering or smuggling or their use in the financing of terrorism, and it harshly punishes financial crimes of all kinds. The army and security forces are working to pursue terrorist cells and refer their members to the competent judiciary, thereby thwarting any attempt to destabilize security and stability in Lebanese regions.”