Hezbollah chief warns Beirut against giving ‘free concessions’ to Israel ahead of talks next week

By AFP and ToI Staff 10 April 2026, 3:25 pm

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Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem calls on the Lebanese government to stop giving “free concessions” to Israel, with the two governments due to begin negotiations in Washington next week.

“We will not accept a return to the previous situation, and we call on officials to stop offering free concessions,” Qassem says in a written message broadcast on the party’s Al-Manar TV, in which he also denounces the “bloody criminality on Wednesday,” when Lebanon said Israeli strikes killed more than 300 people.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced yesterday that Israel would begin negotiations with Lebanon “as soon as possible,” aimed at disarming Hezbollah and reaching a full peace agreement between the two countries.