US President Donald Trump’s administration approved $230 million for Lebanon’s security forces this week as they push to disarm the once powerful armed group Hizbollah, sources in Washington and Beirut said.
A Lebanese source familiar with the decision said the funding included $190m for the Lebanese Armed Forces and $40m for the Internal Security Forces.
Democratic US congressional aides said the funds had been released just before Washington’s fiscal year ended on September 30.
“For a small country like Lebanon, that’s really, really significant,” one of the aides said on a call with reporters, requesting anonymity in order to speak freely.
The US State Department did not respond to a request for comment. The funding was released at a time when the Republican president’s administration has been slashing many foreign assistance programmes, saying that its priority in spending taxpayer dollars is America First.
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