A top US official on Thursday warned Hezbollah against intervening in the escalating conflict between Iran and Israel, calling such a move a “very, very, very bad decision” and urging Lebanon to uphold its ceasefire commitments.
Thomas Barrack, the US special envoy for Syria and ambassador to Turkey, issued the warning during a visit to the Lebanese capital, Beirut, amid intensifying exchanges of strikes between Iran and Israel. His trip also comes as Washington continues to pressure Lebanon to disarm Hezbollah, the Iran-backed armed group and political faction.
After meeting with Lebanese Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri—a known Hezbollah ally—Barrack was asked about the possibility of Hezbollah entering the conflict. “I can say on behalf of President Donald Trump, which he has been very clear in expressing as has Special Envoy Steve Witkoff: that would be a very, very, very bad decision,” Barrack told reporters.
Hezbollah has strongly condemned Israel’s military action against Iran, expressing unwavering solidarity with Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The group warned that threats against Khamenei would have “dire consequences.” However, despite its rhetoric, Hezbollah has not openly threatened to retaliate or join the war.
Last week, a Hezbollah official said that the group had no intention of launching an attack on Israel in response to Israeli strikes on Iran.
Hezbollah remains significantly weakened after last year’s conflict with Israel, which left thousands of its fighters dead, decimated its leadership, and inflicted heavy damage on its strongholds in southern Lebanon and the outskirts of Beirut.
Barrack also held discussions with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, where both sides reportedly reaffirmed the importance of the Lebanese state maintaining a monopoly on arms—an essential clause in the US-brokered ceasefire that ended the last Israel-Hezbollah war. That agreement requires the Lebanese government to prevent any armed groups from operating independently of state control.
Barrack, a private equity executive and longtime advisor to President Trump, chaired Trump’s 2016 inaugural committee and was recently appointed as US special envoy to Syria in addition to his diplomatic post in Turkey. His visit to Lebanon underscores Washington’s concern about potential regional spillover from the Iran-Israel conflict and its continued opposition to Hezbollah’s armed presence in the country.
Melissa Enoch
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