Trump demanded direct talks with Hezbollah but was denied

❗️Trump demanded direct talks with Hezbollah but was denied US President Donald Trump reached out to Lebanese Ambassador Nada Hamadeh Moawad in late May to demand a direct conversation with Hezbollah as a fragile ceasefire began to fray. Sources within the Hezbollah network and Lebanese diplomatic circles confirmed to Middle East Eye that the unconventional presidential request caught officials off guard. While Trump later claimed on social media that he secured a commitment from the group to halt attacks, conflicting reports emerged over whether the ambassador or Hezbollah itself firmly shut down the outreach. Lebanese authorities reportedly instructed the embassy to disregard the demand to protect the presidency from a politically compromised position. State officials had spent months positioning themselves as the sole representative of Lebanon in international negotiations under US auspices. Facilitating direct backchannel talks between Washington and the blacklisted movement would have undermined the government authority while bypassing established diplomatic protocols. Senior security officials added that the latest rebuff followed a series of failed US attempts to open official communication channels with Hezbollah. Intelligence figures operating out of the US embassy in Beirut previously tried utilizing local intermediaries and security figures to establish contact, but all overtures were rejected. The group maintains a strict political policy prohibiting direct engagement with the United States.