Morgan Ortagus, the US deputy Middle East envoy, has held talks with Lebanese authorities on the disarmament of the Shiite group Hezbollah, a day before. A Lebanese official said on Sunday that Ortagus discussed the issue with the country’s head of state in Beirut on Saturday during a meeting. However, she did not set a deadline for the disarmament.
In addition, Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA) reported that Ortagus met with Finance Minister Yassin Jaber, Economy Minister Amer Bissat and the new governor of the central bank, Karim Soueid, on Sunday.
A Lebanese official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Ortagus discussed strengthening and accelerating the work of the Lebanese army to dismantle Hezbollah’s military infrastructure. However, she did not set a deadline. She asked that Hezbollah’s weapons be kept under state control.
Ortagus is visiting Lebanon for the second time as Israel continues to bomb Lebanon despite a ceasefire. Ortagus did not make any official statements during the visit. However, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam described the talks with her as positive on Saturday. They said Ortagus discussed the situation in southern Lebanon and economic reforms.
A UN resolution on November 27 to lay the groundwork for a ceasefire said that only the country’s army and UN peacekeepers would be allowed to remain armed in southern Lebanon. It called for the disarmament of all private armed groups there.
Meanwhile, the new Lebanese authorities are implementing strict measures to control passengers and flights through Beirut’s international airport. A Lebanese security source said the United States had warned that Israel could target Beirut airport to stop arms supplies from Iran to Hezbollah. Since February, air traffic between Lebanon and Iran has been suspended.