Pompeo Says Hezbollah Weapons Risk Torpedoing French Efforts in Lebanon

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. (Reuters)
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. (Reuters)
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Pompeo Says Hezbollah Weapons Risk Torpedoing French Efforts in Lebanon

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. (Reuters)
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. (Reuters)

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday warned France that its efforts to resolve the crisis in Lebanon would be in vain without immediately tackling the issue of Iran-backed Hezbollah’s weaponry.

President Emmanuel Macron has spearheaded international efforts to set Lebanon on a new course after decades of corrupt rule led to its deepest crisis since the 1975-1990 civil war.

But unlike Washington, which deems the heavily armed and politically powerful movement a terrorist group, Paris says its elected arm has a legitimate political role.

The United States last week expanded its sanctions related to Lebanon by blacklisting two former government ministers it accused of enabling Hezbollah. That has raised questions as to how much the US and France are coordinating as Lebanon’s factional rivalries struggle to form a new government.

“The United States has assumed its responsibility and we will stop Iran buying Chinese tanks and Russian air defense systems and then selling weapons to Hezbollah (and) torpedoing President Macron’s efforts in Lebanon,” Pompeo told France Inter radio.

“You can’t allow Iran to have more money, power and arms and at same time try to disconnect Hezbollah from the disasters it provoked in Lebanon.”

Hezbollah and its Shiite ally Amal held ministerial posts in the last government, including the health and finance ministries.

Macron said on Sept. 1, during a visit a month after a devastating Beirut port blast, that Lebanese politicians agreed to form a cabinet by Sept. 15, an ambitious timeline given it usually takes months due to blocs bickering over shares. The government formation efforts have already hit a snag as Amal has been demanding that the finance portfolio be retained by a Shiite official.

French officials have said the priority is to put in place a government that could implement reforms quickly, but the matter of Hezbollah’s weapons was not an immediate issue.

French daily newspaper Le Figaro reported in August that Macron had met Mohammed Raad, the head of Hezbollah’s parliamentary bloc, and told him that the group should disassociate itself from Iran and remove its forces from neighboring Syria.

The French presidency did not deny the meeting, which would be a first between a French leader and a member of the group.

“It’s a doubled-edged sword for Macron. Hezbollah is part of the very governance system that needs changing and I’m not sure you can deal with political Hezbollah without handling armed Hezbollah,” said a French diplomatic source.



Hamas: Israel's Claim on Hostages' Handover Ceremony is Pretext to Evade Obligations

Fighters from Hamas' Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades escort Israeli hostage Omer Shem Tov before handing him over to the Red Cross in Al Nusairat refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, 22 February, 2025. EPA/MOHAMMED SABER
Fighters from Hamas' Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades escort Israeli hostage Omer Shem Tov before handing him over to the Red Cross in Al Nusairat refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, 22 February, 2025. EPA/MOHAMMED SABER
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Hamas: Israel's Claim on Hostages' Handover Ceremony is Pretext to Evade Obligations

Fighters from Hamas' Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades escort Israeli hostage Omer Shem Tov before handing him over to the Red Cross in Al Nusairat refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, 22 February, 2025. EPA/MOHAMMED SABER
Fighters from Hamas' Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades escort Israeli hostage Omer Shem Tov before handing him over to the Red Cross in Al Nusairat refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, 22 February, 2025. EPA/MOHAMMED SABER

Hamas on Sunday condemned Israel's decision to postpone the release of Palestinian prisoners and detainees, saying its claim that the hostages' handover ceremonies are "humiliating" was false and a pretext to evade Israel's obligations under the Gaza ceasefire agreement.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin "Netanyahu's decision reflects a deliberate attempt to disrupt the agreement, represents a clear violation of its terms, and shows the occupation's lack of reliability in implementing its obligations," Ezzat El Rashq, a member of the Hamas political bureau, said in a statement.

Israel said earlier it was delaying the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners it had planned to free the day before until Hamas met its conditions, underscoring the fragility of the Gaza ceasefire accord.

Netanyahu's office released a statement in the early hours of Sunday saying that Israel was waiting to deliver the 620 Palestinian prisoners and detainees "until the release of the next hostages has been assured, and without the humiliating ceremonies."

According to Reuters, Hamas' El Rashq said the ceremonies do not include any insult to the hostages, "but rather reflect the humane and dignified treatment of them,” adding that the "real insult" is what the Palestinian prisoners are subjected to during the release process.

The Palestinian militant group official cited the hands' tying of the Palestinian prisoners and detainees and their blindfolding and threatening them not to hold any celebrations for their release as examples of their humiliation at the hands of Israeli authorities.

Hamas has made hostages appear on stage in front of crowds and sometimes speak before they were handed over. Coffins with hostage remains have also been carried through crowds.

Israel's announcement, which also accused Hamas of repeatedly violating the month-old ceasefire, came after the Palestinian militant group on Saturday handed over six hostages from Gaza as part of an exchange arranged under the truce.