From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, May 12, 2026
Hezbollah chief: Iran-US deal best chance to end Israeli operations; no one outside of Lebanon can make us disarm
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleLazar Berman is The Times of Israel's diplomatic reporter
An agreement between the US and Iran is the best chance to end Israel’s “aggression” against Lebanon, says Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem in a letter to the Shiite group’s operatives.
Qassem rejects any deal reached with Israel that includes Hezbollah’s disarmament.
“No one outside Lebanon has any say in the weapons, the resistance, or the organization of Lebanon’s internal affairs,” he says. “This is an internal Lebanese matter and not part of negotiations with the enemy.”
Qassem says that the terror group is willing to cooperate with the Lebanese government to achieve five points – an end to Israeli operations, the withdrawal of the IDF, the release of Lebanese prisoners, the return of civilians to southern Lebanon, and reconstruction.
He also says that Hezbollah supports the deployment of the Lebanese army south of the Litani River.
If fighting continues, he threatens to turn Lebanon into “hell” for Israel.
“We will respond to the aggression and violations, and we will not return to the pre-March 2nd status quo.”
The Times of Israel Community.