Lebanese President Joseph Aoun will make his first trip to the White House this week to present a plan to U.S. President Donald Trump on how to disarm Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah and secure Israel's withdrawal from Lebanon.
Aoun, who served as the commander of Lebanon's U.S.-backed army before being elected president last year, is the first Lebanese head of state in nearly 20 years to visit the White House, where he will meet Trump face-to-face for the first time on Tuesday.
In comments published by his office last week, Aoun said he would ask Trump to "exert the necessary pressure on Israel" to implement a U.S.-brokered 26 June agreement between Lebanon and Israel.
That deal aims to disarm Hezbollah, see a progressive Israeli troop withdrawal and set the stage for peaceful ties between the two countries.
The official said Aoun believes only Trump possesses the leverage needed to pressure Israel to withdraw its troops and help Lebanon restore its sovereignty.
Aoun, 62, became president last year just before Trump began his second term in the White House. The U.S. welcomed Aoun's election.
At his swearing-in ceremony, Aoun vowed to affirm "the state's right to a monopoly on arms".
His presidency's first year was defined by a government bid to secure the disarmament of Hezbollah, which was founded by Iran's Revolutionary Guards in 1982 and has fought numerous wars with Israel.
Lebanese troops deployed in southern Lebanon to collect Hezbollah weapons caches, in line with a ceasefire after the 2024 war and without opposition from a weakened Hezbollah.
But early into his term's second year, a new war erupted when Hezbollah fired at Israel on 2 March in support of Iran, which was under U.S. and Israeli attack.
Hezbollah's attack triggered a fierce Israeli air and ground campaign that has killed more than 4,300 people, according to Lebanon's health ministry, including nearly 800 children, women and medics.
The toll does not distinguish between civilians and combatants. Hezbollah has not announced a toll for its fighters.
After the war began, Aoun swiftly called for direct talks with Israel, an historic departure for a state repeatedly invaded by Israel since 1978. It led to the highest-level face-to-face contacts in decades between the two countries.
It also made him the focus of fierce criticism by Hezbollah and its supporters.
Aoun has stood firm, criticising Hezbollah for starting the war and saying Lebanon was being destroyed for the sake of Iran.
However, he has stopped short of agreeing to Trump's call for him to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Iran said it was nearing a final pact with Oman defining new shipping lanes between them through the Strait of Hormuz but repeated that the U.S. must ...
Uzbekistan has secured preferential tariffs for fertiliser and petroleum product shipments through Kazakhstan’s Kuryk port to Georgian ports, as Uzb...
Police in eastern India used tear gas, batons and water cannon on Monday to disperse thousands of young protesters marching on the Jharkhand state leg...
An agreement between Iran and the U.S. to reopen the Strait of Hormuz is expected "soon," a U.S. official has said. The deal would result in the resumption of commercial shipping through the sea passage and the lifting of an American naval blockade on Iranian ports.
Flights arriving at Catania airport in eastern Sicily were suspended after volcanic ash from a new eruption of Mount Etna drifted into the airspace around the airport, disrupting operations at one of Italy’s busiest aviation hubs.
A deal on a new route for vessels through the Strait of Hormuz is "very close," Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said, while warning that the reopening of the waterway depends on the U.S. meeting other conditions, including paying compensation to Iran.
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief. Here are the top news stories for the 9th of August, covering the latest developments.
Iran said it was nearing a final pact with Oman defining new shipping lanes between them through the Strait of Hormuz but repeated that the U.S. must meet other conditions.
Iran said it was nearing a final pact with Oman defining new shipping lanes between them through the Strait of Hormuz but repeated that the U.S. must meet other conditions.
A deal on a new route for vessels through the Strait of Hormuz is "very close," Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said, while warning that the reopening of the waterway depends on the U.S. meeting other conditions, including paying compensation to Iran.
An agreement between Iran and the U.S. to reopen the Strait of Hormuz is expected "soon," a U.S. official has said. The deal would result in the resumption of commercial shipping through the sea passage and the lifting of an American naval blockade on Iranian ports.
U.S. President Donald Trump said negotiations to reopen the Strait of Hormuz are progressing and suggested an agreement with Iran could be reached “soon”.
Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, two key maritime chokepoints in the region, decreased significantly from the previous day, according to shipping data.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment