RELEASE: Gottheimer, Shreve Lead Bipartisan Group Urging Lebanon to Disarm Hezbollah Immediately
WASHINGTON D.C. — U.S. Congressmen Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5) and Jefferson Shreve (IN-6) led a letter to the Lebanese President and Lebanese Prime Minister urging them to immediately disarm Hezbollah, including by force if necessary.
It has now been one year since the ceasefire was agreed to, yet there has been a lack of progress toward disarming Hezbollah. Reports indicate that Hezbollah is still actively rearming and repositioning near Israel’s border in violation of the ceasefire and existing UN Resolutions. The consequences of allowing Hezbollah to rebuild are devastating for Lebanon’s security and peace in the region.
“The time for empty promises has passed. Lebanon’s obligations under the ceasefire are clear, and so is the risk of continued delay,” the Members of Congress wrote in a letter to the Lebanese President and Prime Minister. “As you work to implement your reform agenda and stabilize Lebanon’s economy, a prosperous Lebanon cannot coexist with an armed Hezbollah, nor can it thrive while its national army is sidelined by a militia acting as a state within a state.”
The letter, co-led by Reps. Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5) and Jefferson Shreve (IN-6), is also signed by Reps. Don Bacon (NE-2), Gus Bilirakis (FL-12), Mark Messmer (ID-8), Tom Suozzi (NY-3), Claudia Tenney (NY-24), Don Davis (NC-1), Jared Golden (ME-2), and Steve Cohen (TN-9).
Full text of the letter can be found here and below:
President Aoun and Prime Minister Salam:
We write to you with a critical message: disarm Hezbollah now, including by force if necessary. A year has now passed since Lebanon agreed under the November 2024 ceasefire to begin a staged process toward dismantling Hezbollah’s military infrastructure and restoring state authority across all Lebanese territory. Yet empty promises and partial measures that fall far short of disarming the group are clearly not enough. The lack of real progress has enabled Hezbollah to rearm and rebuild its positions, even in areas south of the Litani River, where it is prohibited from operating under UN Security Council Resolution 1701. Every day your government fails to act in a meaningful way pushes Lebanon closer to renewed war and deeper into the grip of a terrorist organization loyal to Iran, not to the Lebanese people.
The consequences are visible across Lebanon. Families in the south remain displaced, their homes caught between Hezbollah’s weapons and Israel’s defense. What was meant to be a ceasefire for reconstruction has instead become an enabler for Hezbollah’s reconstitution. The Lebanese people cannot truly be free while a terrorist group that uses them as human shields for its own survival continues to operate without restraint. As you work to implement your reform agenda and stabilize Lebanon’s economy, a prosperous Lebanon cannot coexist with an armed Hezbollah, nor can it thrive while its national army is sidelined by a militia acting as a state within a state.
The time for empty promises has passed. Lebanon’s obligations under the ceasefire are clear, and so is the risk of continued delay. If Hezbollah continues to rebuild its arsenal and threaten Israel’s border, Israel will act to defend its citizens, as any nation would. The United States will also find it increasingly difficult to justify continued support for a government that refuses to uphold its own commitments and allows a terrorist organization to dictate its future. The current path of inaction only brings about Lebanon’s ruination at the hands of Hezbollah.
You and the entire government have the opportunity to prevent it and to lead Lebanon toward the lasting stability and peace that will finally allow Lebanon to prosper free from war and free from Iran’s shadow. Seize this moment and disarm Hezbollah now.
Sincerely,
MEMBERS OF CONGRESS
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