UPDATES WITH LEBANESE PRESIDENCY STATEMENT
By Wassim Seifeddine, Mohammad Sio, and Rania Abu Shamala
BEIRUT/ISTANBUL (AA) - Lebanon’s stability depends on the state’s exclusive control of weapons, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said Friday.
Speaking in Beirut after talks with his Lebanese counterpart Youssef Raggi, Wadephul said Lebanon’s sovereignty and stability rely on ensuring that weapons remain under the authority of the state, according to a statement by Lebanon’s Foreign Ministry.
He warned that failure to achieve this would undermine confidence in the government’s ability to exercise full authority and make independent decisions.
Wadephul said Germany supports Beirut’s measures to assert state control in southern Lebanon and across the country, stressing that Lebanon’s stability is vital for regional peace.
He also condemned Israel’s ongoing attacks on Lebanese territory as “unacceptable,” urging respect for Lebanon’s sovereignty and adherence to ceasefire agreements.
Raggi, for his part, urged Germany to pressure Israel to halt its attacks and withdraw from occupied Lebanese land, saying diplomacy remains the only path to lasting stability in the south.
The exchanges came as Israel intensified its strikes on Lebanon in recent weeks, including assassinations of individuals it claims are Hezbollah members and heavy bombardment across eastern and southern regions.
Under a November 2024 ceasefire, Israel was supposed to complete its withdrawal from southern Lebanon by January 2025, but has so far only partially pulled out troops and continues to maintain a presence at five border outposts.
In August, Lebanon approved a plan to confine all weapons under state control. Hezbollah rejected the plan and said it will retain its arms until Israel withdraws from the occupied border outposts in the south.
Raggi said the government is implementing the arms control decision “gradually,” noting that the Lebanese army continues to fulfill its duties and that “the state’s monopoly on weapons is the gateway to reconstruction and economic growth.”
According to the Foreign Ministry, Wadephul’s visit aimed to examine what Germany can do to help achieve stability in Lebanon.
Later, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun called on Germany’s foreign minister to urge the international community, the EU, and the US to pressure Israel into complying with the ceasefire announced last November, the Lebanese presidency said in a statement.
“We want to restore stability to Lebanon, starting from the south,” Aoun said, adding that negotiations remain Lebanon’s preferred path to recover occupied land, secure the release of detainees, and achieve a full Israeli withdrawal.