US President Donald Trump has said Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa could take responsibility for confronting Hezbollah, while suggesting that Israel should redeploy its forces from Lebanon to focus on what he described as the larger threat posed by Iran.
Speaking in an interview with Fox News, Trump said an Israeli withdrawal or redeployment from Lebanon could help reduce regional tensions and allow both Washington and Israel to concentrate their attention on Tehran.
“I think it would be good to get out,” Trump said. “Things may become a little quieter because we have to focus our energy on the big issues, and the big issue is Iran.”
Trump said the United States and Israel were maintaining positive relations with Lebanon, describing the possible movement of Israeli forces as a “redeployment” rather than a withdrawal.
He then suggested that al-Sharaa could move against Hezbollah, arguing that Syrian forces would act with greater precision and cause less destruction than Israel.
“He would go in and deal with Hezbollah, and he would do it differently,” Trump said. “He wouldn’t knock down the buildings. I hated seeing the buildings being knocked down.”
Trump added that he believed the Syrian president wanted to take such action.
“I think it would be more precise,” he said. “I know he would like to do it.”
The remarks come amid discussions over Lebanon’s security situation, Hezbollah’s military presence and the future of Israeli operations along the Lebanese border.
The United States last week removed Syria from its list of state sponsors of terrorism for the first time since the country was added in 1979.
