Lebanese Foreign Minister Youssef Raggi said Wednesday, September 30, that stability in Lebanon requires “ending the [Israeli] occupation” and the “handover of Hezbollah’s weapons.” He tied ending the occupation to Lebanon’s efforts to reclaim its land and secure the return of displaced people.
Occupation and negotiations
Raggi said Lebanon is committed to direct negotiations sponsored by the United States, calling them “the only way to reclaim our land and secure the return of the displaced.” He placed the end of Israeli occupation at the centre of his account of what Lebanon needs for stability, while also demanding that Hezbollah hand over its weapons.
“We want peace with all our neighbours, and we stress the need for Iran to stop interfering in our affairs,” the foreign minister said. His remarks laid out his stated conditions and priorities: ending the occupation, handing over Hezbollah’s weapons, pursuing direct U.S.-sponsored negotiations, and stopping what he described as Iranian interference in Lebanese affairs.
Statement on regional tensions
Middle East Eye published the statement in a live-blog entry about the war on Iran. The entry appeared at 17:54 BST on September 30 and reported Raggi’s comments on Lebanon’s stability and negotiations.
Raggi offered no further details about the proposed negotiations or specific steps to begin them. The report also gave no details about the displaced people whose return, he said, negotiations should secure. But it explicitly linked their return and the reclamation of land to direct negotiations sponsored by the United States.
The comments addressed both the Israeli occupation and Hezbollah’s weapons. They also included Raggi’s call for Iran to stop interfering in Lebanese affairs. The report quoted no further statements from Israeli, U.S., Iranian or Hezbollah officials, and offered no more information about the status of negotiations or the circumstances of displacement.
Raggi’s stated position was that Lebanon seeks peace with its neighbours and sees direct, U.S.-sponsored negotiations as the route to reclaiming land and securing the displaced people’s return. The account appeared as a live-blog update on the war on Iran.