A political tremor is shaking Beirut after Lebanese President Joseph Aoun declared in his Independence Day speech that he is ready to enter negotiations with Israel under UN, US, or joint international sponsorship.
The immediately pushed Hezbollah into an uncomfortable defensive posture.
In an interview with pro-Hezbollah channel Al-Mayadeen, Hezbollah MP Hussein al-Hajj Hassan said Lebanon is now “waiting for the Israeli and American response” to the president’s remarks. Yet he refused to discuss the initiative itself or express any position on it. Instead, he posed a series of rhetorical questions aimed at undermining the idea of negotiations:
“What will Israel withdraw from? What will Israel give in return? Israel occupies land, attacks Lebanon, holds detainees, and prevents Lebanon’s reconstruction with the United States — so what exactly is there to negotiate?”