Hezbollah declares Lebanon-Israel framework 'null and void' as Israeli strikes resume two days after signing

Summary

Within hours of the Trilateral Framework's signing at the US State Department on June 26, Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem declared the agreement "null and void," calling it "humiliating, shameful, and a surrender of sovereignty." Qassem said linking an Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon to Hezbollah's disarmament crossed "all red lines." Hezbollah supporters blocked the airport road in south Beirut with burning tires and staged motorbike convoys through central streets near parliament. Hezbollah's parliamentary allies threatened civil unrest over enforcement of the deal. On June 28, two days after signing, Israel carried out a drone strike in south Lebanon that killed one person and wounded two, the first casualties since the framework was agreed, suggesting the Israeli military retains full operational discretion in the south regardless of the deal. As of June 29, French and international media reported Lebanon as effectively rejecting the US-brokered framework while Hezbollah asserted its right to continue armed resistance.

The split

Lebanon's government signed the framework at US insistence, accepting a phased and conditioned Israeli withdrawal in exchange for Lebanese Armed Forces deployment in the south. Hezbollah and its Amal ally, who control the communities most affected by the Israeli occupation, were not party to the deal and reject any link between their disarmament and Israeli withdrawal. Iran backs Hezbollah's position; Benjamin Netanyahu has insisted Israel retains full operational freedom and that any withdrawal depends on verified disarmament. The Lebanese army has appealed for calm, caught between a government that signed and a non-state armed actor that holds the ground.

By the numbers

• 1, person killed by Israeli drone strike in south Lebanon, June 28, two days after deal signing
• 14, points in the Trilateral Framework between the US, Israel, and Lebanon
• 0, Hezbollah representatives involved in the framework negotiations

Why it matters

The Trilateral Framework was designed to convert the Lebanon ceasefire into a lasting peace architecture, but its central requirement, Hezbollah's disarmament, has no enforcement mechanism and no buy-in from Hezbollah itself. The framework's collapse before implementation begins would leave the ceasefire as fragile as the November 2024 arrangement it was meant to supersede, with Israeli forces still occupying parts of southern Lebanon and Hezbollah still armed and in place. The June 28 strike suggests Israel has not changed its operational posture regardless of the diplomatic layer.

What to watch

• Whether Hezbollah carries out a retaliatory strike after the framework rejection.
• Whether the Lebanese Armed Forces actually deploy into the two pilot zones established by the deal.
• Whether the US threatens to withhold the $130 million in committed military and humanitarian funding if Lebanon does not enforce the disarmament provisions.
• How Iran formally characterises the framework and whether it directs Hezbollah to back down or escalate.