Deputy Middle East envoy, Morgan Ortagus on Friday said the United States has set a red line that Shi’ite armed group, Hezbollah, should not be a member of Lebanon’s next government after its military setbacks against Israel last year.
Media Talk Africa reports that Ortagus is the first senior US official to visit Lebanon since President Donald Trump took office and since Joseph Aoun was elected Lebanese President.
Her visit follows a stalled cabinet formation process in Lebanon, where government posts are apportioned on sectarian lines.
Hezbollah’s ally Amal has insisted on approving all Shi’ite Muslim ministers, keeping the process in deadlock.
Ortagus, while speaking to reporters after meeting President Aoun, said she was not afraid of Iran-backed Hezbollah because they have been defeated militarily, a reference to last year’s war between the group and Israel.
“And we have set clear red lines from the United States that they won’t be able to terrorize the Lebanese people, and that includes by being a part of the government,” she said.
