U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday urged Lebanon not to return a cache of seized Hezbollah explosives to the militant group, warning Beirut that handing the material back to the militant group was out of the question. Rubio delivered the message in a call with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, a State Department official said, amid rising tensions over Hezbollah’s rearmament efforts across the border region.
Rubio urged Aoun to hold accountable those who ordered, financed and directed the shipment of hundreds of kilograms of explosives confiscated from Hezbollah, the official said. He underscored that returning the explosives to Hezbollah should be out of the question, and pressed for direct military-to-military communication between Lebanese and Israeli forces for deconfliction.
A Hezbollah lawmaker said earlier that the explosives seized last week by Lebanese security forces belonged to his group. Hassan Fadlallah said Hezbollah had intended to use the explosives against Israel, whose troops are occupying swathes of Lebanese territory seized in this year’s war.
A Hezbollah official and a Lebanese security source told Reuters that the explosives, seized in a car last week, were intended for use in explosive drones targeting Israeli troops. The seizure has become a flashpoint in Lebanon’s effort to disarm the group.
Rubio’s Red Line on Hezbollah Explosives
Washington’s tough line on the Hezbollah explosives reflects U.S. fears that the group is rebuilding its arsenal. Rubio told Aoun the shipment’s backers must face consequences, signaling that the United States will be watching how Beirut handles the case.
The call came as Lebanon’s government tries to enforce a March decision banning Hezbollah’s military activities. That ban followed rocket attacks the group launched at Israel in support of Tehran, which pulled Lebanon into the broader U.S.-Israeli war on Iran that began in February.
The war that began in February reshaped the region. Tehran launched strikes on Israel and Gulf states hosting U.S. bases, while U.S.-Israeli strikes pounded Iran. The fighting killed thousands and displaced millions before a fragile calm took hold, leaving Hezbollah weakened but still armed — and still, by its own lawmaker’s admission, planning attacks.
How the Hezbollah Explosives Were Seized
Lebanese security forces confiscated the Hezbollah explosives last week, intercepting a car carrying hundreds of kilograms of the material. The seizure was part of a wider campaign by the Lebanese army and security forces to prevent armed displays, confiscate weapons, and combat smuggling.
The interception is a sign that Lebanon’s security forces are acting on the government’s orders — the very compliance Rubio praised while demanding more.
Aoun told Rubio that the army and security forces were fully carrying out those decisions, according to the Lebanese presidency. But Aoun also asked Rubio to pressure Israel to halt attacks on southern Lebanese towns and villages, underscoring the two-sided pressure on Beirut.
What the Hezbollah Explosives Standoff Means
The standoff over the Hezbollah explosives highlights the fragility of Lebanon’s post-war order. U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran and Israeli attacks on Lebanon during the war killed thousands and displaced millions, according to Reuters, and any Hezbollah rearmament risks reigniting the conflict.
Analysts say the Hezbollah explosives case will be an early measure of whether Lebanon’s government can enforce its own ban. If the material is destroyed and those behind it prosecuted, it would mark a genuine break with the past; if it quietly finds its way back, the ban will look hollow.
For Washington, the message is clear: Lebanon must choose between disarming Hezbollah and facing the consequences. For Beirut, the seized Hezbollah explosives are both evidence of progress and a test it cannot afford to fail.
Whether Aoun acts on Rubio’s demand will shape U.S.-Lebanese relations in the months ahead — and determine whether the disarmament drive survives its first major test. The fate of the seized Hezbollah explosives now rests with Beirut.