Lebanese President Joseph Aoun will lay out a plan for ending the Israeli occupation and disarming Iran-backed Hezbollah during his meeting with US President Donald Trump at the White House. The visit marks the first by a Lebanese head of state to the White House in nearly 20 years, offering Aoun a critical opportunity.
The meeting comes at a difficult time for Lebanon. Israeli troops are occupying a large area in the country's south, while hundreds of thousands of Lebanese have been forced to flee their homes due to Israeli attacks. Hezbollah strongly opposes the government's direct negotiations with Israel and the state's efforts to collect its weapons.
Aoun said last week that he would ask Trump to "apply the necessary pressure on Israel." The request aims to implement the agreement brokered by the US on June 26 between Lebanon and Israel. The deal calls for Hezbollah's disarmament, the gradual withdrawal of Israeli soldiers, and laying the groundwork for peaceful relations between the two countries.
A Lebanese official said Aoun will present Trump with a written proposal on how to destroy Hezbollah's massive weapons stockpile. The official added that Aoun believes only Trump has the power to pressure Israel to withdraw its troops and help restore Lebanon's sovereignty.
The push to disarm Hezbollah
Aoun, 62, was elected president last year shortly before Trump began his second term. A Maronite Christian, Aoun holds the presidency under Lebanon's sectarian power-sharing system. A career soldier, Aoun was wounded twice and still carries a shrapnel injury.
Aoun's rise reflects a major shift in Lebanon's balance of power following the destructive Israeli campaign against Hezbollah in 2024 and the fall of Hezbollah's ally Bashar al-Assad in Syria. These events weakened the group and its long-dominant grip on the state. At his swearing-in, Aoun declared he would emphasize "the state's right to a monopoly on arms."
His first year in office was marked by the government's push to secure Hezbollah's disarmament. Lebanese troops were deployed south to collect the weapons of Hezbollah, which was founded by Iran's Revolutionary Guards in 1982 and has fought multiple wars with Israel. The operation was carried out under the ceasefire after the 2024 war, without opposition from a weakened Hezbollah.
New war breaks out
But early in Aoun's second year, a new war broke out when Hezbollah fired at Israel on March 2 in support of Iran, which was under US and Israeli attack. Hezbollah's attack triggered a fierce Israeli air and ground campaign that, according to Lebanon's Health Ministry, killed more than 4,300 people, including nearly 800 children, women and health workers. The death toll does not distinguish between civilians and fighters; Hezbollah has not disclosed its combat losses.
After the war began, Aoun quickly called for direct negotiations with Israel. This was a historic shift for a country that has been repeatedly occupied by Israel since 1978, and led to the highest-level face-to-face contacts between the two nations in decades. At the same time, Aoun became the target of fierce criticism from Hezbollah and its supporters.
Aoun criticized Hezbollah for starting the war, saying Lebanon was being destroyed for Iran's sake, and he held his ground. He has so far not responded positively to Trump's call for a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
A military veteran
Aoun was born in Sin el-Fil, a suburb of eastern Beirut. His family is originally from southern Lebanon. His first military posting was as a platoon commander in the army rangers during Lebanon's 1975-90 civil war in 1985. Shortly after being promoted to commander, he directed an operation to clear ISIL militants from the Syrian-Lebanese border.
He led the army through Lebanon's financial collapse in 2019. Following decades of state corruption and mismanagement, the Lebanese currency had collapsed. Aoun warned at the time that the crisis would cause the army, the "backbone of the country," to crumble. In an unusually political statement for an army commander, he held ruling politicians responsible for the collapse, said soldiers were also going hungry alongside the public, and asked politicians: "What do you intend to do?"
Aoun's election ended a two-year presidential vacuum that followed the end of Hezbollah ally Michel Aoun's (no relation) term in 2022. He promised to work on long-delayed economic reforms and deliver justice for the victims of the 2020 Beirut port explosion.
