BEIRUT – After Israel and Lebanon signed a preliminary agreement in Washington on June 26 aimed at establishing a lasting peace between them, the reaction in Lebanon was immediate and sharply divided.
Supporters of the US-brokered deal said it was a move to curtail Iranian influence in Lebanon, setting out a pathway for the disarmament of the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah, which Israel is at war with. They also said it asserts Lebanese sovereignty over the country’s internal security.
Others rejected the framework, calling it a capitulation to Israeli and American demands that could deepen divisions inside Lebanon.
At the core of the deal is a phased security arrangement in which the Lebanese armed forces would gradually assume control over all Lebanese territory as non-state armed groups, like Hezbollah, are disarmed and their military infrastructure is dismantled.
In parallel with that, Israeli forces would carry out a staged withdrawal from the territory, more than 9km into Lebanon, which they have occupied since early March.
On the night of June 26, hours after the deal was announced, protesters, mostly aligned with Hezbollah, took to the streets of the capital, Beirut, waving the militant group’s yellow flags and denouncing the government.
Footage broadcast on social media and carried by Lebanon’s National News Agency showed dozens of youngsters riding motorcycles and mopeds, blocking roads, burning tyres and gathering near the seat of the Lebanese government.
“We certainly condemn and denounce this shameful agreement,” said Abbas Kassem, 30, who is from Blida, a town in southern Lebanon that Israel has occupied for months.
One criticism of the preliminary deal is that the timeline for Israel’s withdrawal is not fixed, instead being based on how quickly Hezbollah can be disarmed.
Hezbollah’s leader, Naim Qassem, strongly criticised the deal on June 27. In a statement on social media, he called the deal “humiliating, shameful and a surrender of sovereignty”, and declared it “null and void”.
The US said that, as part of the agreement, it would rally international support to help rebuild Lebanon and restore its economy.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun endorsed the agreement, describing it as a first step towards restoring full sovereignty and enabling the return of displaced communities.
“This is what every free, responsible and honourable Lebanese agrees upon,” he said in a social media statement.
This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
