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Rubio Urges Lebanon Not to Return Seized Hezbollah Explosives
Confirmed
In Short: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio urged Lebanese President Joseph Aoun not to return explosives seized from Hezbollah, according to a US official.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio urged Lebanese President Joseph Aoun not to return explosives seized from Hezbollah, according to a US official. The explosives, totaling approximately 780 kilograms, were seized last week from a vehicle carrying 250 kilograms of TNT and 250 kilograms of C-4.
A Hezbollah MP acknowledged that the explosives belonged to the group, a rare admission by the Iran-backed party. Hezbollah has demanded the return of the shipment, saying it constitutes “capabilities” used against Israel.
Rubio also called on Lebanese authorities to pursue accountability for those responsible for organizing, financing, and directing the shipment. He urged Israel to comply with the framework agreement signed between the two countries and to refrain from targeting farmers in southern Lebanon.
Lebanese President Aoun received a phone call from Rubio on Thursday, during which they discussed the general situation in Lebanon and the region. Aoun asked Rubio to pressure Israel to halt attacks, commit to the framework agreement, and allow farmers to access their fields.
Hezbollah has refused to disarm as long as Israeli forces remain on Lebanese land, and Israel has continued striking southern Lebanon, despite a US-brokered framework agreement signed in June.
Lebanese authorities intercepted the truck carrying the explosives at a checkpoint on the highway connecting Beirut with the eastern Bekaa Valley.
Hezbollah lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah rejected allegations that the materials were intended for political assassinations inside Lebanon, describing those accusations as “baseless.”
What this adds
The intercepted explosives included C-4, which has been used in political assassinations in Lebanon.
Rubio also discussed Lebanon's 1955 Boycott Law, which prohibits contact between Lebanese and Israeli citizens, during the call with Aoun.
What's confirmed
- Rubio told Aoun that he should not return several hundred kilograms of explosives seized by Lebanese authorities from Hezbollah, a US official said.
- WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun about the confiscation of hundreds of kilograms of explosives from Hezbollah, a US State Department official said on Thursday.
- On March 2, the Lebanese government specifically banned Hezbollah’s military activities after the movement launched rockets at Israel to back up Tehran, pulling Lebanon into the broader US-Israeli war on Iran that began on February 28.
- Rubio urged direct military-to-military communication between Lebanese and Israeli forces “for deconfliction,” the official added.
- The secretary of state "underscored that returning explosives to (Hezbollah) should be out of the question," the official said.
- Aoun Urges Rubio to Pressure Israel to Halt Attacks on Southern Lebanon Lebanese President Joseph Aoun received a phone call on Thursday from US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, during which they discussed the general situation in Lebanon and the region in light of recent developments.
- "The vehicle and its cargo belong to the resistance" against Israel, lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah said.
What's still developing
- Under a deal reached through US-brokered Israel-Lebanon talks, Beirut vowed to disarm Hezbollah, which would in turn lead to Israeli troops gradually withdrawing from Lebanon.
- Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon on Sunday morning killed four people and wounded 20 others, according to Lebanese authorities, after Hezbollah launched two explosive drones at Israeli troops operating in the area.
- Israeli forces remain deployed inside what Israel describes as a “security zone” extending roughly 10 kilometers (6 miles) into southern Lebanon along the border.
- Israeli air attacks in southern Lebanon have killed at least 11 people, including two children and two medics, Lebanese state media reported.
- Israeli strikes on Lebanon have killed more than 4,350 people and wounded over 12,300 since the conflict escalated in early March, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry.
- Lebanon’s president made a rare visit to a southern city Saturday, close to where Israel captured a strategic hill, amid fears of more Israeli attacks.
- The latest Israel-Hezbollah war killed over 4,000 people in Lebanon and displaced over 1 million.
- Since the ceasefire was implemented, hundreds of thousands have returned to their homes in southern Lebanon and Beirut’s southern suburbs.
- The demolition of the Hezbollah base triggered seismic alarms at Israel’s National Geological Institute The IDF announced on Thursday evening that it had demolished Hezbollah's underground stronghold on Ali Taher Ridge in southern Lebanon.
- The IDF used over 1100 tons of explosives to destroy over 5.4 kilometres (3.4 miles) of tunnels under the ridge.
- Before demolishing the base, the IDF cleared eight underground routes beneath the ridge, where it found dozens of weapons caches containing explosives, drones, and anti-tank missiles, as well as hundreds of mines and additional military equipment.
- Salam has said authorities will "identify all individuals involved in this criminal operation and those who ordered it".