U.S. Pushes for Implementation of UN Security Council Resolution to Disarm Hezbollah

Latest Developments​

The United States called for a full implementation of a UN Security Council (UNSC) resolution passed 18 years ago that calls for the full cessation of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah and the withdrawal of the Iran-backed terrorist group from southern Lebanon. Speaking to reporters in Beirut on October 21, Amos Hochstein, the White House envoy on the Israel-Hezbollah crisis, noted that there “is no one who can look at the last 18 years and say that anyone did anything to implement” UNSC Resolution 1701 — alluding to the need for both the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) and the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) to disarm non-state actors and push them north of Lebanon’s Litani River.

Prior to the adoption of Resolution 1701, UNSC Resolution 1559 was passed in 2004 to disarm non-Lebanese militias in the country. While Syrian forces eventually withdrew from Lebanon, Iranian-backed Hezbollah’s presence has only grown in the interim, building up a massive supply of rockets and missiles, including many precision-guided munitions.

During his visit to the Middle East, Hochstein is holding talks with the governments of Lebanon and Israel aimed at bolstering the LAF and UNIFIL’s respective enforcement of Resolution 1701, which was passed following the 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel. His previous attempts to broker a deal were dismissed by Hezbollah, which ruled out any redeployment within Lebanon and said their attacks on Israel would continue for as long as Israel’s offensive against Hamas remains underway. While Hochstein stressed that “tying” the conflict in Lebanon to other conflicts in the region is not in the “interests” of the Lebanese,” Hezbollah launched its unrelenting attacks on northern Israel in the immediate aftermath of the October 7, 2023, atrocities carried out by its Iran-backed ally Hamas in the south.

Expert Analysis​

“Hochstein returns to the region empowered not by American diplomatic savvy but by the force of Israel’s arms. Along with the battering of Hezbollah’s capabilities has been the ebbing of the fear it inspires among many Lebanese who want no part in its Iranian-orchestrated chaos. This may represent an opportunity to weaken Iran’s death grip on Lebanon.” — Mark Dubowitz, FDD CEO

“It is not immediately apparent what ‘improvements’ to LAF or UNIFIL could induce their enforcement of Resolution 1701. LAF doesn’t confront Hezbollah because Lebanon lacks the will to do so, not because of a numerical or equipment deficiency — and UNIFIL’s troop-contributing countries are unlikely to ever approve of a mandate for the peacekeeping force that will allow it to proactively use force to restrain, degrade, and disarm Hezbollah.” — David Daoud, FDD Senior Fellow

“The United States explained to the Lebanese why UNSCR 1701 and UNIFIL are now defunct and irrelevant. Either the Lebanese recreate their March 14, 2005, national consensus and demand that Hezbollah surrender its arms to the Lebanese Armed Forces, or Israel will have to police Lebanon to ensure that Hezbollah does not rebound.” — Hussain Abdul-Hussain, FDD Research Fellow

Related Analysis

“The Contest of Wills Between Israel and Hezbollah,” by David Daoud and Ahmad Sharawi

“Lebanese Prime Minister Issues Rare Complaint Over Iranian ‘Interference,’” FDD Flash Brief

“The Road to the Third Lebanon War,” by David Daoud and Ahmad Sharawi

“The challenges facing UN peacekeepers in Lebanon,” by Seth J. Frantzman