Hezbollah is expected to effectively reject the US demand that it disarm, and will not respond to the Lebanese government's proposed "step-for-step" plan.
Senior Hezbollah official Mohammad Kamaty stated this week that it is not the organization that was given a final deadline, but rather Israel and the US. He said both countries should implement UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and "honor their international commitments."
Kamaty also claimed that both Hezbollah and the Lebanese Armed Forces had fulfilled their obligations under the ceasefire agreement, and that it is now up to Israel and its supporters to act.
According to Kamaty, Israel and the US "want the Lebanese to forget the occupation, the rights of the prisoners and the reconstruction process, and to focus on a single demand: the disarmament of the resistance [Hezbollah]." He complained that Hezbollah had cooperated throughout Lebanon's political process - from the election of the president to the formation of the government and the vote of confidence - and that all necessary steps had been taken to pull Lebanon out of its crisis.
In this context, Lebanese sources believe Hezbollah will not respond to the proposal to dismantle its sites north of the Litani River. Officials in the Lebanese government told the Arab media that discussions are still underway between the offices of the country's three heads of state - President Michel Aoun, Prime Minister Tammam Salam, and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri.
These sources added that reports suggesting the next cabinet meeting will deal with this issue are inaccurate. They said that only once a unified response is reached will it be submitted to the government for approval.
