The United States envoy to Lebanon, Thomas Barrack, has championed a response released by Beirut to the United States' demands of a complete disarmament of the Iran-backed terrorist group Hezbollah in exchange for the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Lebanon, according to Fox News.
Barrack has said that he is "unbelievably satisfied" with Beirut's response, which was given a four-month timeframe after receiving an American proposal on June 19th. He has not revealed whether the Lebanese government has agreed to take active steps to disarm Hezbollah.
Hezbollah, in solidarity with Hamas after the October 7th attack in 2023, began firing rockets into Northern Israel. In response, the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) launched an invasion into Southern Lebanon, and managed to decapitate Hezbollah's leadership through a series of precision strikes enabled by electronic surveillance, including the infamous 'pager attack,' where intercepted communications led to the targeted killing of senior commanders.
However, Barrack has maintained that Israel and Lebanon share the same goal: peace.
The Israelis do not want war with Lebanon. Both countries are trying to give the same thing – the notion of a stand-down agreement, of the cessation of hostilities, and a road to peace.
He has also suggested that the Trump administration may have looked into adding Lebanon to the list of countries that have established a policy of normalizing a relationship with Israel, under the Abraham Accords. Lebanon has not provided any information on whether they are interested in pursuing a path to joining the Accords.
Barrack has said that Syria is already in the process of renewing conversations and dialogue with Israel.
The dialogue has started between Syria and Israel, just as the dialogue needs to be reinvented by Lebanon. If you don't want change, it's no problem. The rest of the region is moving at Mach speed and you will be left behind.
The comments come a week after Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs Gideon Sa'ar said Jerusalem wants to expand the Abraham Accords.
We have an interest in adding countries, such as Syria and Lebanon, our neighbors, to the circle of peace and normalization – while safeguarding Israel's essential and security interests,