Exclusive: Trump demanded direct talks with Hezbollah but was denied

Exclusive: Trump demanded direct talks with Hezbollah but was denied Submitted by Adam Chamseddine on Wed, 08/05/2026 - 09:17 Attempts to speak with Lebanese movement were shut down - but sources dispute whether it was Lebanese Ambassador Nada Hamadeh Moawad or Hezbollah that refused the president Donald Trump and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio with Lebanese Ambassador Nada Hamadeh Moawad during a meeting at the White House in Washington, DC, 23 April 2026 (Brendan Smialowski/AFP) Off Donald Trump called the Lebanese ambassador in Washington in late May and demanded a direct conversation with Hezbollah , a request that was then denied to the US president, Middle East Eye can reveal. According to two sources intimately familiar with events from the Hezbollah side and a Lebanese diplomatic source, Trump called Ambassador Nada Hamadeh Moawad in frustration as the ceasefire in Lebanon frayed. Soon after, on 1 June, Trump claimed he had spoken to Hezbollah through unidentified intermediaries and secured a commitment from the group to halt attacks against Israel.