Israeli, Lebanese Delegations Head to Washington for Hezbollah Disarmament Talks

by Emmitt Barry, Worthy News Washington D.C. Bureau Chief

(Worthy News) – Israeli and Lebanese delegations are set to meet in Washington on Tuesday for three days of talks focused on the disarmament of Hezbollah in southern Lebanon and the possibility of future normalization between the two neighboring countries.

Israel’s delegation will be led on the diplomatic track by Ambassador to the United States Yechiel Leiter, while Brig.-Gen. Amichai Levin, head of the IDF Planning Directorate’s Strategic Division, will lead separate military discussions. Lebanon’s delegation will be headed by Ambassador to the United States Nada Hamadeh Maawad, along with former Lebanese ambassador Simon Karam.

A central issue is a proposed pilot program under which the Lebanese Armed Forces would deploy to selected areas in southern Lebanon and begin dismantling Hezbollah’s military infrastructure. Lebanon wants the program to begin in areas currently held by Israeli forces, with Israel withdrawing as Lebanese troops move in. Israel, however, is pressing for the first phase to begin in an area where the IDF is not currently deployed, arguing that Beirut must first prove it can confront Hezbollah before Israel relinquishes control of sensitive territory.

The talks come as the United States has launched a CENTCOM-backed monitoring mechanism aimed at giving policymakers real-time information about fighting in Lebanon.

At the same time, the diplomatic effort is being complicated by Iran’s renewed role in Lebanon under a U.S.-backed “deconfliction cell,” created after recent U.S.-Iran talks in Switzerland. The mechanism is intended to prevent further military operations in Lebanon, but some Lebanese officials have privately questioned why Washington is facilitating Tehran’s return to a country where Iranian influence had recently been weakened.

The concern is that Iran’s renewed presence could embolden Hezbollah to resist disarmament. Senior Hezbollah officials have already insisted that Israel must fully withdraw from Lebanese territory before the group takes any steps toward laying down its weapons.

For Israel, the core issue remains whether Lebanon’s government can reclaim sovereignty in the south from an Iranian-backed militia that has long operated as a state within a state. For Lebanon, the talks represent a test of whether its army can replace Hezbollah’s armed dominance without plunging the country into another round of conflict.

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