Qassem: US Midterms and Netanyahu’s Weak Showing Open a Door for Lebanon

Hezbollah’s leader casts Republican losses in Washington and Benjamin Netanyahu’s poor Israeli result as openings for Beirut to guard its sovereignty.

Published On 12 Nov 202612 Nov 2026

Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem has embraced last week’s Republican setbacks in the US midterm elections and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s disappointing performance at the Israeli ballot box, presenting both as gains for Lebanon.

In a Wednesday address honouring fighters killed by Israel and their relatives, Qassem branded the American vote an “earthquake” and the Israeli one a “defeat.” Netanyahu’s bloc, home to the group’s most entrenched adversary, fell short of the 61 seats required to govern following the October 27 election.

Qassem argued that the outcome benefits Lebanon and signals that the country should push back against Washington’s campaign to strip the group of its weapons.

“Come, let us rebuild our country together, save it from the darkness of failure, and protect it from the empty rhetoric of those who sow discord and those who rely on American tutelage,” he said, speaking by video link.

“Lebanon belongs to all of us. We are partners in building it and sharing the cost of protecting its sovereignty.”

Holding on to Hezbollah’s arsenal

The Iran-backed group remains at odds with Lebanon’s US-backed President Joseph Aoun over whether to give up its arms — a step Washington is pressing for, and one Hezbollah frames as capitulation to Israel.

Qassem refused to entertain any handover, pointing to Israel’s continued military presence in parts of the country’s south.

“There will be no state monopoly on the resistance’s weapons, no regulation, no prohibition, and no disarmament under Israeli occupation,” he said.

Qassem took over as secretary-general after Israel assassinated his predecessor Hassan Nasrallah and Nasrallah’s chosen successor, Hashem Safieddine, in 2024.

Their killings came amid a widening regional war: in February, the US and Israel launched surprise strikes on Iran and killed Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Hezbollah answered with missiles and drones fired into Israel, triggering weeks of heavy Israeli bombardment of southern Lebanon that Lebanese authorities say killed more than 4,300 people and, according to the United Nations, displaced roughly a million.

Qassem also commended Iran’s shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz for sending global oil prices higher and halting shipping lanes, predicting it would erode American and Israeli leverage across the region.

President Donald Trump has likewise tied the Iran war and the fuel-price surge it set off to last week’s poor showing for Republicans, a view shared by Vice President and probable 2028 contender JD Vance.

“The reason we lost is the war. The president himself said so,” Vance said last week.

Terms for disarmament

Qassem cautioned Lebanese officials against pledges and arrangements that advance Israeli aims, urging them to concentrate on the country’s own problems instead.

“Why are you binding yourselves before the world to positions that serve the Israeli project?” he asked.

Israeli forces still hold extensive territory in southern Lebanon and have flattened dozens of the roughly 60 villages and towns under their control.

Israel and Lebanon agreed to a US-brokered ceasefire in June, but Israeli airstrikes on the south have not stopped.

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