Interesting: Walid Jumblatt undercuts Hezbollah

Following his meeting with Ahmad a-Sharaa, leader of the rebel HTS which helped topple the Assad regime in Syria, Lebanese Druze leader Walid Jumblatt said openly today (Sunday) that the "Shebaa farms" are Syrian territory.

This is a major statement, as Hezbollah has claimed this territory, which Israel calls Mount Dov, as Lebanese, and used its ostensible occupation by Israel as justification for Hezbollah to continue to be armed to liberate it instead of handing the weapons over to the Lebanese Army.

The statement is further surprising coming from Jumblatt, who has been critical of Hezbollah in the past but who is no friend of Israel. Indeed, since October 7, Jumblatt's posts on X have been increasingly virulent in their attacks on the Jewish State.

Such a statement from Jumblatt may point to a growing distance between the Druze and Hezbollah in Lebanon, though it remains to be seen how far it leads.