Netanyahu says Israel could withdraw from Lebanon if Hezbollah is
disarmed
[August 25, 2025]
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israeli
forces could start withdrawing from territory they hold in southern
Lebanon after the Lebanese cabinet’s “momentous decision” earlier this
month to work towards the disarmament of the militant group Hezbollah by
the end of 2025.
Netanyahu said Monday that if Lebanon takes the necessary steps to
disarm Hezbollah, then Israel will respond with reciprocal measures,
including a phased reduction of the Israeli military presence in
southern Lebanon.
Since the Israel-Hezbollah war ended in November 2024 with a
U.S.-brokered ceasefire, Hezbollah officials have said the group will
not discuss its disarmament until Israel withdraws from five hills it
controls inside Lebanon and stops almost daily airstrikes that have
killed or wounded hundreds of people, most of them Hezbollah members.
There was no immediate response by Lebanese authorities to Netanyahu's
statement.
Beirut is under U.S. pressure to disarm the group that recently fought a
14-month war with Israel and was left gravely weakened, with many of its
political and military leaders dead.
The announcement comes after a visit to Israel by U.S. envoy Tom
Barrack, who has been attempting to solidify the ceasefire and to push
Lebanon to move ahead with disarmament of Hezbollah.
During a visit to Lebanon last week, Barrack said the “Lebanese
government has done their part” and “now what we need is for Israel to
comply with that equal handshake.”
Lebanon needs international support to rebuild after last year’s war,
which left large swathes of southern and eastern Lebanon in ruins and
caused an estimated $11.1 billion in damages, according to the World
Bank. International aid is likely to be contingent on Hezbollah
disarming.
However, the Lebanese government must move cautiously to avoid an
internal explosion of unrest. Naim Kassem, Hezbollah’s
secretary-general, has vowed to fight efforts to disarm the group by
force, sowing fears of civil conflict in the country.
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French U.N. peacekeepers patrol the Lebanese-Israeli border in the
village of Kfra Kila, southern Lebanon, Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2025.
(AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Hezbollah’s leadership has vowed not to disarm, saying the national
government's decision to remove the Iran-backed group’s weapons by
the end of the year serves Israel’s interests.
Israel has accused Hezbollah of trying to rebuild its military
capabilities, and its military has said the five locations in
Lebanon provide vantage points or are located across from
communities in northern Israel, where about 60,000 Israelis were
displaced during the war.
Since the war ended, Hezbollah has withdrawn most of its fighters
and weapons from the area along the border with Israel south of the
Litani river.
The ceasefire agreement it vague how Hezbollah’s weapons and
military facilities north of the Litani river should be treated,
saying Lebanese authorities should dismantle unauthorized facilities
starting with the area south of the river.
Hezbollah maintains that the deal only covers the area south of the
Litani, while Israel and the U.S. say it mandates disarmament of the
group throughout Lebanon.
A low-level conflict between Israel and Hezbollah started a day
after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack against Israel from Gaza,
when Hezbollah began launching rockets across the border in support
of its Palestinian ally. The conflict escalated into war in
September 2024 and left more than 4,000 people dead.
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