Lebanon's Aoun Says Army Alone Can Bear Arms, Challenging Hezbollah

🏛️ BEIRUT — Aoun calls Hezbollah illegitimate while Israeli bombs still fall. 📌 LOOK CLOSER: A Lebanese president asserting army-only legitimacy mid-Israeli strike is political cover, not courage — it signals Beirut is angling for a post-strike settlement that sidelines Hezbollah. Israel needs this framing to justify continued operations as counter-militia, not state war. The variable: whether Hezbollah's command treats Aoun's statement as a provocation requiring a response that forces Lebanon's army to choose sides.