With Trump back in office, Hezbollah demands U.S. policy changes

Hezbollah welcomes any effort to stop the war in Lebanon but does not pin its hopes for a ceasefire on a particular U.S. administration, Hezbollah lawmaker Ibrahim al-Moussawi said on Thursday when asked about Donald Trump's election victory.

"It might be a change in the party who is in power, but when it comes to Israel, they have more or less the same policy," Moussawi told Reuters. "We want to see actions, we want to see decisions taken," he said.

Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah have exchanged fire for more than a year, in parallel with the Gaza war, but fighting has escalated since late September, with Israeli troops intensifying bombing of Lebanon's south and east and making ground incursions into border villages.

Israel says it is targeting Hezbollah infrastructure and military assets, while avoiding civilians. Hezbollah and Lebanese officials point to the rising death toll, with more than 3,000 killed, and widespread destruction in the country as evidence that Israel is targeting civilians.

U.S. diplomatic efforts to halt fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, which included a 60-day ceasefire proposal, faltered last week ahead of the U.S. election on Tuesday in which former President Donald Trump recaptured the White House.

Moussawi acknowledged the heavy toll of Israeli attacks that have blown apart thousands of buildings, mostly in Lebanon's Shi'ite Muslim-dominated south and east and Beirut's southern suburbs, but said the group's military capabilities remained strong.

"Our hearts are broken - we are losing very dear lives. This feeling that [Israel] cannot be punished or brought to international justice is a result of U.S support which renders them immune to accountability," he said.

"America is a full partner in what's happening because they can exercise influence to stop this destruction."