{"id":1557,"date":"2026-07-09T11:40:23","date_gmt":"2026-07-09T11:40:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/topmovingpross.com\/?p=1557"},"modified":"2026-07-09T11:40:23","modified_gmt":"2026-07-09T11:40:23","slug":"how-a-push-to-disarm-hezbollah-is-deepening-divisions-in-lebanon-and-raising-fears-of-civil-war","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/topmovingpross.com\/?p=1557","title":{"rendered":"How a push to disarm Hezbollah is deepening divisions in Lebanon and raising fears of civil war"},"content":{"rendered":"
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BEIRUT (AP) \u2014 A deal between Lebanon and Israel was billed as paving the way for peace<\/span>. But in Lebanon, it is deepening longtime divisions and raising fears of political paralysis or even a return to civil war.<\/p>\n

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The U.S.-brokered deal envisions an Israeli troop withdrawal from Lebanon<\/span> and an eventual peace agreement between the two countries \u2014 which technically remain in a state of war nearly 80 years after Israel\u2019s establishment. But the agreement says a full Israeli withdrawal will happen only after Hezbollah is disarmed, infuriating the Iran-backed militant group<\/span>.<\/p>\n

Lebanon\u2019s Western-backed government and Hezbollah have exchanged angry words, and the militant group\u2019s supporters have blocked major roads in protest. One Hezbollah lawmaker said the country would plunge into civil war if the government tries to force the group\u2019s disarmament.<\/p>\n

The tensions have stirred up memories of Lebanon\u2019s devastating 1975-1990 civil war and reminded many of more recent clashes between Hezbollah gunmen and pro-government fighters in 2008. They also have raised deep questions over whether the U.S.-brokered deal will be able to get off the ground.<\/p>\n

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A resumption of the war between the U.S. and Iran<\/span> would further complicate the deal\u2019s prospects and raise the risk of renewed conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.<\/p>\n

The deal is expected to top the agenda when Lebanese President Joseph Aoun heads to the White House on July 21.<\/p>\n

The deal is rooted in the US war against Iran<\/h2>\n

Lebanon\u2019s political landscape has been divided for over two decades between one coalition that is Western-backed and another that is supported by Iran and led by Hezbollah. Both camps see the outcome of the new agreement as existential.<\/p>\n

The latest war between Israel and Hezbollah erupted in March, triggered by the joint U.S.-Israel war launched against Iran<\/span> days earlier.<\/p>\n

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Hezbollah, which entered the conflict without seeking approval from the government, has sought to link the end of its war against Israel to the outcome of broader U.S.-Iran talks. The Lebanese government, trying to minimize Iran\u2019s influence, aimed to keep the two tracks separate and negotiate a ceasefire directly with Israel.<\/p>\n

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The Lebanon-Israel deal turned the tables<\/h2>\n

The pro-Hezbollah camp was jubilant when the ceasefire deal between Iran and the U.S.<\/span> explicitly called for an end to the war in Lebanon.<\/p>\n

That led to a truce that has substantially reduced the intensity of the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. But Israeli troops continue to occupy large swaths of southern Lebanon, and hundreds of thousands of people remain displaced from villages and city neighborhoods that have been almost entirely demolished.<\/p>\n

The linkage to the U.S.-Iran ceasefire was widely seen as boosting Hezbollah\u2019s standing and cementing Iran\u2019s influence over Lebanon.<\/p>\n

But days later, the tables turned as Israel and Lebanon announced their June 26 \u201cframework agreement\u201d in Washington. That deal conditioned withdrawal of Israeli forces on disarmament of Hezbollah throughout the country.<\/p>\n

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