Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem on Saturday evening condemned the US-Iran memorandum of understanding as "humiliating" and "shameful," and vowed to use international and Arab pressure to force Israel to comply with its first article — a full withdrawal from Lebanon. The statement, reported by the Zioneer, follows the group's earlier rejection of the separate Israel-Lebanon framework.
Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem, in a statement delivered to The Zioneer on Saturday evening, escalated his movement's rhetoric further, branding the US-Iran memorandum of understanding as "humiliating" and "shameful." He vowed to mobilize international and Arab pressure to force Israel to comply with its first article — a full withdrawal from Lebanon. This latest development, reported at 17:04 Jerusalem, comes after a cascade of increasingly hostile statements from Qassem throughout the day.
As The Zioneer reported, Qassem first condemned the Israel-Lebanon framework deal in a series of statements beginning at 16:08 Jerusalem on Saturday. He initially called the deal a "grave sin" and a "terrible mistake," rejecting any link between an Israeli withdrawal and Hezbollah's disarmament. By 16:08, he had escalated, labeling the deal "humiliating" and a "surrender of sovereignty." The thread, now six versions deep, shows Qassem's positions hardening from outright rejection of the framework to explicitly leveraging the US-Iran MOU as an alternative instrument. The corroboration has evolved from an initial report via Israeli media to a statement delivered directly to The Zioneer from a senior Hezbollah source.
As The Zioneer reported on Thursday, June 18, senior Israeli security officials assessed the US-Iran MOU as severely damaging Israeli deterrence and expected to intensify international pressure on Israel for a withdrawal from Lebanon. On Monday, June 15, Hezbollah officially endorsed the US-Iran agreement, claiming it ensures Lebanon's rights. Qassem's new threat to impose the MOU's terms on Israel represents a direct challenge to the Biden administration's framework and signals a coordinated effort by Hezbollah to use the agreement as a diplomatic tool, rather than a basis for de-escalation.
What remains unverified: whether the US-Iran MOU contains a direct, binding clause on an Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon, or if Qassem is interpreting a broader principle. The full text of the agreement has not been publicly released by Washington or Tehran, and The Zioneer has not independently confirmed its exact language.
6 developments
- StrongHezbollah secretary-general: Israel-Lebanon agreement 'void', calls for applying US-Iran understandings
- DevelopingHezbollah's Qassem says group committed to US-Iran understandings
- StrongHezbollah chief demands Israel leave Lebanon, accuses IDF of war crimes
- StrongHezbollah chief Qassem reaffirms armed resistance as only path, demands full Israeli withdrawal
Source and signal
- Internal intake