Syrian President Rejects Trump's Suggestion That Damascus Handle Hezbollah

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa rejected on Sunday evening U.S. President Donald Trump’s suggestion that Syria should take responsibility for disarming Hezbollah in Lebanon. Al-Sharaa said Syria is willing to help Lebanon only through positive means, not through war and not under any Syrian sponsorship over Lebanon.

Al-Sharaa said Trump was concerned about events in Lebanon and wanted to stop the fighting there. But, he said, Trump’s remarks were “misinterpreted” as if Syria were about to invade Lebanon “tomorrow morning.” He added, “We have a deep problem with Hezbollah, but we do not want all of Lebanon to die.”

According to al-Sharaa, “Lebanon cannot remain trapped between the options of civil war and war with Israel.” He said Lebanon’s Shiite community needs calm, not more fear and confrontation.

Trump made the comments at the G7 summit, when asked whether the agreement with Iran would survive if Israel attacked in Lebanon. He answered, “Yes, it could. But we have the same little problem that keeps popping up again and again, and that is Hezbollah.” He then said Syria’s president should now “deal with” the Lebanese terror group, adding that he had helped bring the current Syrian leader to power with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and others. Trump said that leader had done “a tremendous job” unifying Syria and was very tough on Hezbollah, concluding that he suggested Israel let Syria handle Hezbollah because, “to be honest, I think they will do it better.”