Tom Barrack, Joseph Aoun discuss implementation of government’s decision to collect all weapons under state control, according to local media
US special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack met with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun in Lebanon's capital Beirut on Tuesday, according to local media.
The state news agency NNA said that an accompanying US delegation also joined the meeting.
Barrack, who also serves as the US ambassador to Türkiye, arrived in Beirut on Tuesday to meet with Aoun and other senior officials to discuss the disarmament of the non-state groups in Lebanon, primarily Hezbollah.
On Aug. 5, the Lebanese government approved a plan to consolidate all weapons under state control. The government tasked the army with drafting a plan to achieve this by the end of the month and executing it before the end of 2025. Hezbollah rejected the decision, calling it a “grave sin.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said on Monday that Tel Aviv will reduce its military presence in southern Lebanon if Beirut “takes the necessary steps to implement the disarmament of Hezbollah.”
Israel launched a military offensive in Lebanon on Oct. 8, 2023, which escalated into a full-scale war by September 2024, killing more than 4,000 people and injuring around 17,000.
A ceasefire was reached in November, but Israeli forces have conducted near-daily attacks in southern Lebanon, claiming to target Hezbollah activities.
Under the truce, Israel was supposed to fully withdraw from southern Lebanon by Jan. 26, but the deadline was extended to Feb. 18 after Tel Aviv refused to comply. Israel still maintains a military presence at five border outposts.
