Salam slams Qassem's civil war 'threats'

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam has accused Hezbollah chief Sheikh Naim Qassem of making "unacceptable" threats to unleash civil war, after the Hezbollah leader vowed to confront government plans to disarm his group.

In a post on X, Salam said Qassem’s remarks "constitute an implicit threat of civil war."

He added that "any threat or intimidation related to such a war is totally unacceptable."

Salam also hit back at Hezbollah's characterization of the government’s disarmament push as an American-Israeli effort.

"Our decisions are purely Lebanese, made by our cabinet, and no one tells us what to do," he said.

"The Lebanese have the right to stability and security... without which the country will not be able to recover, and no reconstruction or investment will take place," Salam added.

Earlier on Friday, Qassem had said that "the government is implementing an American-Israeli order to end the resistance, even if it leads to civil war and internal strife."

"The resistance will not surrender its weapons while aggression continues, occupation persists, and we will fight it... if necessary to confront this American-Israeli project no matter the cost," Qassem added.

He also urged the government "not to hand over the country to an insatiable Israeli aggressor or an American tyrant with limitless greed," adding the Lebanese state would "bear responsibility for any internal explosion and any destruction of Lebanon."