Lebanese Army Commander General Rodolphe Haykal is set to visit the US on February 3-5, where he faces the challenge of rallying support for his troops’ efforts to demilitarise Hezbollah.

Haykal will meet with Central Command officials in Florida before engaging with Congress and State Department representatives in Washington. Following his return to Beirut after February 5, he will present a Cabinet report on the second phase of restricting weapons north of the Litani River, then travel to Saudi Arabia and Germany ahead of the March 5 conference supporting the Lebanese Army.

While the Lebanese Armed Forces have been tasked with disarming Hezbollah and taking military control of southern Lebanon, they have struggled to fulfil this aim, with Israel eliminating two Hezbollah operatives in the region over the course of February 1 and 2.

Ministerial sources told Lebanon 24 that while Hezbollah has not cooperated in providing locations of weapons caches and tunnels in southern Lebanon, the group has avoided direct confrontation with the army during implementation. "The army was independently discovering tunnels and weapons caches and carrying out its duties, but Hezbollah did not provide maps of their locations," the sources stated, noting cooperation from local residents who guided Lebanese forces to weapons sites.

President Joseph Aoun is simultaneously pursuing diplomatic engagement, beginning a two-day working visit to Madrid, where he will meet King Felipe VI and Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez. "Our talks with His Majesty the King and the Prime Minister will be an opportunity for me to ask our friend Spain to work within the European Union" for decisive action compelling Israel to implement the cessation of hostilities agreement and comply with UN Resolution 1701, Aoun publicly announced upon arrival. Meanwhile, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrault is expected in Beirut next week.