This is Beirut spoke with U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal and John Cornyn on Thursday about Hezbollah and Iran, both urging stronger action in the region.
Blumenthal commented that “I think we need more aggressive action against Hezbollah, which seems to be regaining strength in Lebanon, and the United States needs to work more closely with Israel in making sure that Hezbollah does not recover its strength.”
He added that the U.S. must “provide more help to the Lebanese forces to confront Hezbollah, whether it's more weapons or other kinds of support,” and “should encourage the Lebanese Armed Forces, which are perfectly capable of doing more, to undertake this kind of action.”
“There ought to be the Lebanese and the Israelis working together against Hezbollah,” Bluenthal said when outlining a path forward for curbing Hezbollah’s capabilities and influence.
Cornyn spoke on the links between Hezbollah and Iran, stating that “Iran and its proxy, Hezbollah, have been occupying and running essentially Lebanon for a long time now.”
He attributed Hezbollah’s influence and regional obstacles to Iran, adding that “Iran is really the head of the snake or octopus, with more tentacles that's causing problems in Yemen with the Houthis and Hamas in Gaza, and of course in Lebanon with Hezbollah.”
Cornyn mentioned the ongoing rounds of dialogue between the Trump administration and Iran, highlighting U.S. demands regarding Iran’s nuclear program, ballistic missile arsenal, and proxy network. “President Trump has given a major demand on the supreme leader with regard to nuclear weapons production and ballistic missiles. And we'll see what the regime decides to do,” he said.
Mentioning that the Trump administration maintains multiple pathways to approach Iran, Cornyn elaborated that “President Trump has been provided with a number of different options, and he's going to be able to decide what to do.”
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