Hezbollah “will not let anyone disarm” it, the Lebanese group’s leader Naim Qassem said, as Washington presses Beirut to compel the movement to hand over its weapons, AFP reports.

“We will not let anyone disarm Hezbollah or disarm the resistance” against Israel, Qassem said in remarks on a Hezbollah-affiliated TV channel.

“We must cut this idea of disarmament from the dictionary.”

Qassem said his group was ready for dialogue on a “defence strategy”, “but not under the pressure of occupation” by Israel.

“Israel must withdraw (from south Lebanon) and cease its aggression, and the Lebanese state must begin the process of reconstruction,” he added.

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