US envoy says Hezbollah must be disarmed ‘as soon as possible’

US envoy Morgan Ortagus says in an interview broadcast today that Hezbollah and other armed groups should be disarmed “as soon as possible” and that Lebanese troops are expected to do the job.

Ortagus spoke to Lebanese broadcaster LBCI at the end of a three-day visit to Beirut, where she met with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri and other officials and political representatives.

“It’s clear that Hezbollah has to be disarmed and it’s clear that Israel is not going to accept terrorists shooting at them, into their country, and that’s a position we understand,” Ortagus says. “We continue to press on this government to fully fulfill the cessation of hostilities and that includes disarming Hezbollah and all militias.”

Asked whether the US had set a timeline for the disarmament to take place, Ortagus says: “As soon as possible.”

“There’s not necessarily a timetable so to speak, but we know that the sooner that the LAF (Lebanese Armed Forces) is able to meet these goals and disarm all militias in the state, the sooner the Lebanese people can be free,” she adds.