The Trump administration is intensifying its efforts to pressure the Lebanese government to dismantle Hezbollah, a militant group backed by Iran, with a senior U.S. official describing Lebanon as a “failed state” due to its lack of action.

According to The Associated Press, U.S. Ambassador to Turkey, Thomas Barrack, who also serves as the envoy to Syria, labeled Lebanon a “failed state” during a Saturday meeting in Bahrain, citing the country’s “paralyzed government.” He highlighted that Hezbollah maintains a force of 40,000 fighters and possesses between 15,000 to 20,000 rockets and missiles. In stark contrast, he noted that Hezbollah pays its fighters $2,200 monthly, while soldiers in the Lebanese Armed Forces earn a mere $275 monthly and are equipped with subpar weaponry.

In November 2024, the U.S. facilitated a ceasefire agreement between Hezbollah, classified as a terrorist organization by the U.S., and Israel. By August, Lebanon had agreed to an American proposal to disarm Hezbollah by the close of 2025.

Tom Barrack, the U.S. ambassador to Turkey and special envoy to Syria, addressed the media following discussions with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun in Baabda, just east of Beirut, Lebanon, on August 18, 2025. (Photo by Hussein Malla/AP)

Nevertheless, according to Israeli officials and prominent experts on Hezbollah, Lebanon’s unstable government and military have struggled to curtail Hezbollah’s activities throughout the nation.

Sarit Zehavi, a leading Israeli security expert from the Israel Alma Research and Education Center, told Fox News Digital, “Israel is the only one disarming Hezbollah with its airstrikes. The Lebanese army is far from enough. We don’t see proof of disarmament of Hezbollah by the Lebanese army. The Lebanese army is not entering villages in south Lebanon to search for the weapons of Hezbollah inside of the houses.”

Hezbollah members salute and raise the group’s yellow flags during the funeral of fallen comrades, in Shehabiya in south Lebanon on April 17, 2024. (AFP via Getty Images)

Zehavi, who lives in northern Israel, said the Lebanese army needs to go house-to-house and neighborhood-to-neighborhood and put the weapons on trucks and publish what was seized.

She added that names of the villages that have been cleared of Hezbollah weapons need to be disclosed. “All of that is not happening,” said Zehavi.

“Disarming Hezbollah and other non-state actors, as well as ending Iran’s proxy activities, is crucial to ensuring peace and stability in Lebanon and across the region,” a U.S. State Department official told Fox News Digital, adding that “an armed Hezbollah is a threat to Lebanon and its neighbors. The region and the world are watching carefully. A stable Lebanon will present attractive investment opportunities.”

U.S. envoy to the Middle East Morgan Ortagus said Wednesday in Lebanon that the Lebanese military “must now fully implement its plan.”

An Israeli government security official echoed her concerns in an interview with Fox News Digital.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun meets with Morgan Ortagus, President Donald Trump’s deputy special representative for the Middle East, at the Baabda Palace in Beirut, Lebanon, on Feb. 7, 2025. (Lebanese Presidency/Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)

“We feel obligated to the American mechanism. We pass on Hezbollah’s violations to the American mechanism. We have seen the Lebanese army enforce the ceasefire, but the pace is insufficient,” said the security official, adding, “We were striking Hezbollah terrorist operatives on an almost daily basis since the ceasefire in accordance with it. A lot of these operatives are operating from civilian areas. The IDF is putting a lot of effort [into] not targeting civilian areas. We can’t tolerate Hezbollah’s attempts to rebuild its capabilities.”

Tensions mounted on Wednesday when the Lebanese army condemned an Israeli attack that killed a municipal worker in the border town of Blida, calling it “a criminal act” and a violation of the ceasefire agreement.

The IDF said its forces had opened fire after identifying “an immediate threat” during an operation to destroy Hezbollah infrastructure. 

A flag bearing the picture of assassinated pro-Iranian Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah flutters in front of a picture of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei at Nasrallah’s grave in Beirut, Lebanon, Sept. 27, 2025. (Marwan Naamani/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images)

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun instructed the army on Thursday to confront any Israeli incursion into southern Lebanon after Israeli forces crossed the border overnight and killed a municipal employee, despite a U.S.-brokered ceasefire.

Lebanon’s Armed Forces (LAF) has historically stayed on the sidelines of major conflicts with Israel, and has not confronted its military in recent months. Israeli warplanes flew over the presidential palace in Beirut, according to a witness, shortly after Aoun’s first order for the army to engage Israeli troops since he became president in January.

A convoy of United Nations vehicles drives through the area of Marjayoun in southern Lebanon on Dec. 4, 2024, during a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP via Getty Images)

The United Nations Interim Force In Lebanon (UNIFIL) condemned the Israeli attack, calling it “a blatant violation of the Security Council Resolution 1701 and Lebanon’s sovereignty.”

The Israeli government security official stressed, “We put trust into the ceasefire. We have shared interests with the state of Lebanon and common interests to disarm Hezbollah. Our responsibility is first and foremost to Israel. We have civilians who have returned to the north and need to ensure their safety.”

UNIFIL was tasked prior to Oct. 7 with aiding the Lebanese Army in disarming Hezbollah and from establishing military outposts on the border with Israel. Israeli officials have long argued UNIFIL has failed miserably.

When asked about the allegations that Hezbollah is rearming and reconstructing its command centers, Tilak Pokharel, a UNIFIL spokesperson, told Fox News Digital that UNIFIL operates from Litani river to the Blue Line, a demarcation area that covers 10% of Lebanon’s territory. He said, “We have not seen any build-up, and we have been working every day and supporting them, the Lebanese Armed Forces. Until earlier this week, we found 360 weapons and ammunition caches since Nov. 27, 2024.”

An IDF soldier is photographed near anti-tank missiles that belong to the terror group Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. (IDF)

Media outlets reported that a French unit of UNIFIL shot down an Israeli drone this week. The UNIFIL spokesman said, “We don’t normally name the unit involved.”

Matthew Levitt, a leading scholar on Hezbollah from the Washington Institute, told Fox News Digital, “Nobody should be surprised that Hezbollah is trying hard to rebuild its capabilities. And therefore nobody should be surprised that Israeli forces continue to strike Hezbollah forces, not only in the south but also in the Beqaa Valley. With a government in Beirut eager to constrain Hezbollah, the group is under pressure at home as well. Note the Lebanese Central Bank’s action against Al Qard al Hassan and other Hezbollah financial institutions in Lebanon is a telling example.”

Walid Phares, an American academic expert on Hezbollah and Lebanon who has advised U.S. presidential candidates, has analyzed movements among Lebanese citizens to forge diplomatic relations with Israel.

He told Fox News Digital, “Recently, there has been a noticeable rise in statements from Lebanese politicians and social media influencers calling for the establishment of diplomatic relations with Israel and an end to the ongoing war.”

He added, “Many Lebanese have witnessed Hezbollah’s defeat in its confrontation with Israel, dispelling the long-standing notion — promoted by Hezbollah — that it is invincible. Yet, despite this military setback, the militia in Lebanon shows no intention of relinquishing its weapons. Hezbollah remains determined to maintain control over Lebanon and suppress other communities. Moreover, the group continues to receive directives from the Islamic Republic of Iran to endure the current circumstances and prepare for future conflict.

“Consequently, an increasing number of Lebanese are calling for their government to initiate dialogue with Israeli leaders, hoping that such a step would prompt U.S. support to help Lebanon disarm Hezbollah.”

An Israeli soldier walks by a tunnel entrance near an observation post of the United Nations Interim Forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL), in the southern Lebanese village of Naqoura along the border with Israel.  (Ilia Yefimovich/picture alliance via Getty Images)

The U.S. State Department official told Fox News Digital, “The Government of Lebanon has made a courageous and historic decision to disarm Hezbollah, a task it has assigned to the Lebanese Armed Forces as the sole legitimately armed force in Lebanon.  We extend our full support for this decision.  The United States will continue to partner with the Government of Lebanon to make sure that Lebanon is free, prosperous and safe for all Lebanese people.”

The Lebanese embassy in Washington, D.C., and its government in Beirut did not respond to multiple Fox News Digital press queries.