Lebanon Endorses US-Backed Plan to Disarm Hezbollah as Proxies Mobilize

Beirut’s cabinet approved a timeline to disarm the militia by year-end despite widespread Shia protests

Overview

Hezbollah supporters held demonstrations in 16 locations across southern Lebanon, the Bekaa and Beirut suburbs on August 7 to oppose US envoy Thomas Barrack’s disarmament objectives.
Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei replaced Ali Akbar Ahmadian with Ali Larijani on August 6 as his representative on the Supreme National Security Council, marking a shift toward more public-facing security policy.
Abdollah Hajji Sadeghi, Khamenei’s liaison to the IRGC, expressed cautious support on August 8 for negotiations with the United States under Supreme Leader supervision.
Former Iraqi premier Nouri al Maliki told Iranian adviser Ali Akbar Velayati on August 8 that Iraq would block any US or Israeli attempts to disarm the Iranian-backed Popular Mobilization Forces.
A Druze committee declared a temporary autonomous government in Suwayda on August 6, and the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria held an August 8 conference pressing for a decentralized governance framework.