Lebanon's ministerial statement no longer includes "resisting Israeli occupation"

L'Orient Today reports that the new government has released its ministerial statement, and it is notable for two reasons.

It is the first time since the Taif Agreement [which ended the 1975-90 Civil War] that a ministerial statement makes no mention of "the people's right to resist by all means the Israeli occupation."

Instead, the new ministerial team emphasized that "the state is fully responsible for the defense of its territory" and must "hold the monopoly on weapons." The text underscores "Lebanon's right to defend itself in case of aggression, in accordance with the U.N. Charter"

This is saying that Hezbollah can no longer claim to defend southern Lebanon and it has no right to have a separate army. 

For three decades, Hezbollah has claimed that it was necessary to build a separate army and pretended to be defending Lebanon. Now, everyone sees that Hezbollah invited attacks, with its various offensive actions, not defended against them.

It seems that Lebanon has now turned the page on the infamous triad of "army, people, resistance," long cherished by Hezbollah — with the party's approval and without being provoked.

[The statement]  first reaffirms Lebanon’s commitment to upholding international resolutions, including U.N. Resolution 1701 (2006) in full — which, among other provisions, calls for Hezbollah’s withdrawal north of the Litani River — as well as all other U.N. resolutions concerning Lebanon.

This is a barely veiled reference to Resolution 1559 of 2004, which specifically calls for the disarmament of both "Lebanese and non-Lebanese militias."

The Cabinet also reaffirmed its commitment to upholding the cease-fire established on Nov. 27, 2024.

Today everyone is concerned over Israel's insistence on keeping control of several strategically important areas on the border. Yet Israel withdrew from Lebanon after routing Hezbollah, which is as good a proof as any that Israel has no territorial designs on occupying Lebanon. 

But it has every interest in defending its own communities from the high ground that Hezbollah could regain. 

All the other areas that the IDF withdrew from have reportedly been taken over by the Lebanese army. Hezbollah still have a presence in southern Lebanon but it appears that, at least for now, the Lebanese government and army are serious about keeping them from regaining power.

Which is about as clear a victory as is possible in today's world. 

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