The U.S. State Department said on Saturday that Hezbollah “simply takes orders from Iran” and urged the group to be disarmed.

The U.S. State Department said on Saturday that Hezbollah “simply takes orders from Iran” and urged the group to be disarmed.

The ministry’s spokesperson, in a statement published by the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, said: “The United States stands with the people of Lebanon and wants Lebanon to be a secure and independent country. To achieve this, Hezbollah must be disarmed.”

He called the Lebanese government the “only legitimate partner for dialogue” about the country’s future, and urged Hezbollah to hand its weapons over to the government.

The spokesperson for the U.S. State Department added: “Whenever Hezbollah decides to be ready to do so, it can talk with the Lebanese government. But in the current situation, Hezbollah to date does not want to talk with the Lebanese government, not with us, and not with Israel, because it simply takes orders from Iran.”

The statement ended with: “It is time for Hezbollah to do what is in the best interests of Lebanon and the people of Lebanon.”