What Would It Take to Disarm Hezbollah?

Lebanon’s government outlawed Hezbollah’s military operations after Hezbollah fired rockets into Israel and Lebanon faced a regional war. Prime Minister Nawaf Salam demanded Hezbollah hand over its weapons and ordered security forces to take immediate measures to enforce the decision and arrest violators. Hezbollah fighters were detained at a southern checkpoint while transporting Kalashnikov rifles and thousands of rounds of ammunition. They openly stated they were defending their land and believed their place was in the south rather than in court. Despite the symbolic impact of Hezbollah fighters appearing in a military courtroom, the hearing was brief and the men were released after paying fines, showing how enforcement remained constrained.

"Days earlier, Hezbollah had fired a volley of rockets into Israel, plunging Lebanon into a regional war that its leaders were desperate to avoid. In response, Lebanon's government took the extraordinary step of outlawing Hezbollah's military operations. As Israel began a large-scale bombing campaign, Nawaf Salam, the Prime Minister of Lebanon, demanded that Hezbollah hand over its weapons, and ordered security forces to take "immediate measures" to enforce the decision and arrest violators."

"It seemed an epochal moment. For decades, Hezbollah's arsenal had been tolerated, even tacitly condoned-shielded by the group's political power and by its status among supporters as a counterweight to Israel. The three Hezbollah fighters had been stopped at a checkpoint in the country's south, caught ferrying Kalashnikov rifles and thousands of rounds of ammunition toward the front line."

"After nearly a week in detention, they made no effort to hide what they had been doing. "We are trying to defend our land," they said, according to two senior judicial officials present at the hearing that day. "Our place is not here in the court. Our place is in the south.""

"The mere presence of Hezbollah fighters in the dock shattered the group's long-standing aura of impunity in Lebanon. But, after a hearing that lasted barely five minutes, the men were released. Each paid a fine of ni"

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