US approves $230M for Lebanon’s push to disarm Hezbollah
New US funds for Beirut signal rare bipartisan approval for progress by Lebanon's security forces as they dismantle Hezbollah weapons caches, but significant risks remain as the militant faction resists full disarmament.
WASHINGTON — The US approved a last-minute $230 million package of support for Lebanon’s security forces as they continue to push to disarm Hezbollah.
The funds were cleared just shy of Tuesday’s deadline marking the end of the US government’s fiscal year in order to avert delays caused by the government shutdown, congressional staffers told reporters on Thursday.
“US government assistance directly supports both the Lebanese Armed Forces and Internal Security Forces as they work to assert Lebanese sovereignty across the country and fully implement UN Security Council Resolution 1701,” a State Department spokesperson told Al-Monitor via email.
The spokesperson described the 2006 resolution, which calls for Hezbollah’s withdrawal from areas south of the Litani River, “the only viable framework for a durable security arrangement for both Lebanese and Israelis.”
