Jumblat warns that Hezbollah can't be disarmed by force

Druze leader Walid Jumblat has said that he does not fear a new civil war in Lebanon because such a war "requires two armed sides, and currently only Hezbollah possesses weapons."

"However, we are living through a period of dangerous instability, and some Lebanese leaders may actually desire a return to civil war because they are prisoners of their past," Jumblat said in an interview with French news portal Mediapart.

"Today, there are those who encourage the rejection of the entire Shiite community under the pretext of isolating Hezbollah, as if all Shiites are Hezbollah. This is absurd," Jumblat added.

He said "this brings to mind an old Israeli idea, supported by some figures on the Lebanese right, which considers Mount Lebanon to be Christian land, and that the solution is to 'return' the Shiites to Iraq."

"Today, we are hearing this suicidal theory again, which calls for the expulsion of the Shiites from Lebanon, forgetting that they have been an integral part of Lebanese society for centuries," Jumblat lamented.

Asked about the American and Israeli demands for the immediate disarmament of Hezbollah, Jumblat said "dialogue with Hezbollah is necessary" seeing as "it is not a foreign entity in Lebanon."

"The problem today is: with whom within the party do we negotiate? In Hassan Nasrallah's time, it was possible to engage in dialogue with him because he understood Lebanon in his own way and had a large popular base. Today, however, we don't know who actually leads the party. Naim Qassem is merely a spokesperson, not the decision-maker," Jumblat said.

"With the continuation of Israeli attacks, assassinations, and bombings, it's impossible to demand that a Hezbollah fighter surrender his weapon. He would simply tell you: Go away," the Druze leader suggested.

He added that for disarmament to be discussed, "a degree of calm must first be achieved, along with an Israeli withdrawal guaranteed by the United States, the strengthening of the Lebanese Army, and the establishment of a new international force to replace UNIFIL."

"Let's be clear: disarming Hezbollah by force, as the Americans demand, is militarily and politically impossible. The Lebanese army is composed of Lebanese -- Shiites, Sunnis, Druze and others -- and it cannot be forced to fight Shiite villages," Jumblat went on to say.

Noting that Israel has created a "mini-Gaza" in south Lebanon through destruction, Jumblat said he supports negotiations, whether direct or indirect, but on the following conditions: a return to the 1949 armistice line, with a mutual monitoring mechanism and an international force that could include the French and Italians.