Resolution to Remove United States Armed Forces From Lebanon
Floor Speech
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Ms. TLAIB. Mr. Speaker, this week's vote is about immediately ending all U.S. participation in the Israeli Government's violent assault against the people of Lebanon.
Over 4,200 people have been massacred since the start of the Israeli apartheid regime's brutal campaign of ethnic cleansing and territorial expansion in Lebanon, and nearly 1,000 additional people have already been killed since Congress refused to pass the Lebanon War Powers Resolution earlier this month. That is 1,000 additional people in just 25 days.
Over 4,200 beautiful souls have been taken from our Earth and from their loved ones by U.S.-funded bombs and with operational and targeting support from the U.S. military. Indiscriminate bombings continue to this day. Children, medics, journalists, parents, students--everyone wants to label them as Hezbollah, but they were civilians. They were intentionally targeted.
Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record a June 17 report from UNICEF titled: ``Lebanon: 12 children killed, maimed daily, despite Hezbollah- Israel truce.'' [From UN News]
Lebanon: 12 Children Killed, Maimed Daily, Despite Hezbollah-Israel Truce
More than 100 days of war reveals a shattering snapshot of life for civilians in Lebanon amid Israeli strikes and forced displacement, the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) reported on Wednesday.
Since hostilities escalated between Israel and Hezbollah militants in southern Lebanon on 2 March, 247 children have been killed and 992 injured, an average of 12 children killed or maimed every day, according to the agency.
``For more than three months, children in Lebanon have lived through experiences no child should ever endure,'' UNICEF country representative in Lebanon, Marcoluigi Corsi, said in a statement issued on Wednesday following the 15 June announcement that the United States and Iran had reached agreement on a Memorandum of Understanding.
``We hope that this ceasefire will be indeed a real ceasefire because since the declaration of the previous one, violence against children and the conflict hasn't really stopped,'' he told UN News. Dozens of violations
Despite a reduction in the intensity of hostilities, UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, UNIFIL continue to observe trajectories since Monday and extensive Israeli military activity, the UN Spokesperson said on Wednesday.
Their observations include Israel Defense Forces (IDF) high-density armoured movements, sustained logistical traffic and large-scale engineering and demolition works across the area alongside reports of 26 violations of Lebanese airspace by the Israeli military between midnight and 4 pm local time and one air attack. Key takeaways
The humanitarian situation in Lebanon remains fragile and needs immense and severe despite the recent US-Iran agreement and subsequent signs of regional de-escalation. Here are some highlights from the latest flash update from the UN relief agency, OCHA:
Returns remain limited and cautious despite reduced amount of hostilities
Israeli airstrikes and seven renewed displacement orders covering 37 localities across the South and Nabatieh governorates triggered additional displacement between 12 and 14 June
3,798 deaths and 11,781 injuries since 2 March: Lebanese Public Health Ministry
131,200 internally displaced persons remain in 644 collective shelters
Aid efforts reached over 1.1 million people through water and sanitation services and 13.6 million meals delivered
2026 Lebanon Flash Appeal only 32.7 per cent funded, with approximately $209.6 million received against $639.9 million requested
UNIFIL recorded 312 trajectories between midnight and 4 pm on Wednesday, a total of 291 attributed to the IDF and 21 attributed to Hezbollah, compared with, 174 and 189 trajectories were reported over 24 hour periods on Monday and Tuesday, respectively.
``Outside UNIFIL's area of operations, we are aware of reports of Israeli artillery shelling and airstrikes targeting multiple locations, including Nabatieh, Saida and Jezzine, as well as repeated drone overflights over Beirut and its southern suburbs,'' the UN Spokesperson said. ``At least one strike on a vehicle in Shukin reportedly resulted in four fatalities and several injuries.'' Seaside security
UNIFIL reported a violation of Lebanon's maritime space by two IDF vessels conducting a patrol roughly 600 metres off the shores of Naqoura in southern Lebanon, which is also the home base for UN peacekeepers, the UN Spokesperson said.
UNIFIL, and its naval ``blue helmets'', announced on Wednesday ongoing efforts to assist the Lebanese navy in assuming greater responsibility for securing its territorial waters throughout 2026, based on an agreement signed last December.
``A long-term stability on land is intrinsically linked to security at sea,'' said UNIFIL Force Commander Major General Diodato Abagnara. Where is humanity?
Widespread destruction has scarred large parts of the country, affecting homes, schools and essential services, including water, sanitation and hygiene systems, further compounding already severe humanitarian needs and dealing a devastating blow to children living through the bombings and violence.
Mr. Corsi said a meeting with teenaged girl at a UNICEF- supported hospital remains ``stuck in my mind and my heart''.
``Collateral damage'' from an attack included the deaths of her father and three brothers, leaving her mother alive and the girl in a coma, he said, recalling the first two questions she asked him while she was recovering: Where is humanity? Where is a sense of justice?
``Those are tough questions coming from a 14-year-old child that you cannot answer,'' he said. ``No child should go through that nightmare.'' Mass displacement, childhood disrupted
More than 770,000 children are experiencing heightened distress from repeated exposure to violence, loss and displacement, with many unable to return home because of ongoing fighting and the threat of unexploded ordnance, Mr. Corsi's statement declared.
``Behind these staggering figures are lives cut short or forever changed, and families facing profound loss, trauma, and uncertainty,'' he wrote. ``Many have fled their homes multiple times, witnessed violence first-hand, lost loved ones and seen their schools, communities and sense of safety shattered.''
But, the numbers alone cannot convey the full scale of the crisis, he explained.
``Beyond those killed and maimed, an entire generation of children has seen its childhood disrupted,'' he stated. ``Their sense of safety, one that every child needs to grow and thrive, remains profoundly undermined.''
``The scale of physical and psychological harm we are witnessing is unacceptable, and children continue to pay a terrible price for this conflict,'' the UNICEF representative said, urgently calling for a sustained cessation of violence.
The true cost of this crisis will not only be measured in lives lost today, but in the opportunities missed tomorrow. Give children a chance
Children must be protected from further harm and schools, hospitals, water systems and other civilian infrastructure urgently safeguarded, Mr. Corsi implored.
Moreover, humanitarian access must be ensured and international law must be respected.
``Most importantly, Lebanon's children must be given the chance not only to survive this crisis, but to recover from it and reclaim the future that conflict has placed at risk.''
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Ms. TLAIB. Mr. Speaker, that is an innocent child being killed or maimed every 2 hours in this U.S.-assisted invasion.
The apartheid government of Israel is intentionally killing civilians, again, in Lebanon, in Palestine, and in Iran. It is the same genocidal playbook.
Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record a link to a June 18 report from the United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry titled: ``'The essence of childhood has been destroyed': Israel's deliberate targeting of Palestinian children in the Occupied Palestinian Territory since 7 October 2023.'' https://www.ohchr.org/ sites/default/files/documents/hrbodies/hrcouncil/sessions-regular/ session62/a-hrc-62-crp-2.pdf Mr. Speaker, everyone should read this horrifying report. It finds that the Israeli military deliberately targets and kills children as part of their ongoing genocide in Gaza.
When Israeli leaders talk about applying the ``Gaza model'' in Lebanon, this is what they mean. They never mention Hezbollah.
They say that we have already seen the Israeli military kill 251 Lebanese children during the U.S.-assisted invasion.
Mr. Speaker, I just want to be clear. I include in the Record a link to a June 17 report from Amnesty International: ``Lebanon: Israel radically expands use of unlawful mass `evacuation' orders and commits war crime of unlawful transfer.'' https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/ news/2026/06/lebanon-israel-radically-expands-use-of-unlawful-mass- evacuation-orders-and-commits-war-crime-of-unlawful-transfer/ Mr. Speaker, more than 1.3 million people have already been forced to leave their homes or been killed, with the Israeli military telling them that they will not be allowed to return.
Mr. Speaker, 81 Lebanese neighborhoods have been violently depopulated and demolished, erased from the map entirely.
I want to make this very clear. The United States is not a bystander to these war crimes. It is an active participant. The United States is currently engaged in illegal and unauthorized hostilities, supporting the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, in violation of the War Powers Act.
The Trump administration is providing intelligence, coordinating strikes, demonstrating overt command over the Israeli military decisions, including green-lighting specific Israeli attacks and operations.
The Trump administration is also providing spare parts and maintenance to keep Israeli jets in the air. Without that support, those jets cannot drop bombs to kill Lebanese children.
Congress must reassert its constitutional authority and immediately vote to end all unauthorized U.S. participation in the destruction of Lebanon.
Israeli leaders have been open about their plans. This is about seizing Lebanon's territory, expelling its people, expanding the government of Israel's borders. This is about ethnic cleansing and what they call, in their own words, their ``Greater Israel project.''
Just this past week, genocidal maniac Netanyahu has said that Israel does not plan to withdraw from the territory that they seized in Lebanon and that they will forcibly displace Lebanese and the people of Lebanon will not be able to return to their homes.
Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record a June 24 Haaretz article: ``Netanyahu: Israel Won't Withdraw From Lebanon `As Long as I am Prime Minister'.'' [From HAARETZ, June 24, 2026]
Soldiers In, Residents Out'. Netanyahu: Israel Won't Withdraw From Lebanon `As Long as I Am Prime Minister' (By Noa Shpigel, Rawan Suleiman, and Yaniv Kubovich)
Defense Minister Israel Katz also said Israel will not withdraw from the territories the IDF captured in Syria either. `This is the security doctrine. The IDF must be on the enemy's turf and protect the communities from within the territory itself,' he said.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday that the Israeli military will not withdraw from the IDF-occupied buffer zone in southern Lebanon as long as he is in office.
``As long as I am prime minister, we will maintain the security zone in southern Lebanon,'' he said, speaking in MUNIEXPO conference for municipal development. ``We will be the first in the world to solve the explosive drones problem,'' he added, referring to Hezbollah's primary weapon against Israeli soldiers since fighting in Lebanon began in March.
Meanwhile, Lebanese reports said that two people were killed in a drone strike on a vehicle in Kfar Roummane, near the city of Nabatieh in southern Lebanon. Earlier on Wednesday, the IDF said its forces struck two armed Hezbollah operatives in the Ali al-Taher Ridge area. The IDF later said it struck a vehicle ``posing a threat to IDF soldiers'' in the same area.
Speaking with reporters on Wednesday, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Israel has consistently said it has no territorial claims in Lebanon, saying that withdrawal depends on the Lebanese army's ability to secure its territory.
``The Israelis have been clear they don't have any quarrels with the Lebanese people nor do they have any claims on the territory of Lebanon,'' Rubio said. ``One of the issues that's been discussed in these negotiations is about the creation of pilot zones--specific, defined areas where the Lebanese Armed Forces can go in, take control and secure that territory, and then move on to the next pilot zone.''
According to Rubio, ``it'll be a process. This is not going to happen overnight.'' The secretary of state added, ``The more of the area the Lebanese Army is able to secure, the less in Hezbollah's control and the less Israel will be in Lebanon.''
Earlier on Wednesday, Defense Minister Israel Katz stressed that that Israel will not withdraw from IDF-occupied areas in Lebanon, ``even if there is an American demand to do so,'' leaving 200,000 displaced Lebanese residents ``who will not return.''
``There will be no civilians and no terrorists,'' Katz said. ``Why? Because what happened in the past in security zones where there was also a civilian population was that there were explosives and attacks against soldiers, and therefore, we do not allow that,'' he added.
``Soldiers in, residents out. The infrastructure is destroyed, the houses are dangerous and ruined. We are not withdrawing,'' Katz said.
``We have significant achievements that began with a terrible blow on October 7,'' the defense minister continued. ``Since then, the entire people, the leadership, and the army have acted with great determination. I am not aware of any situation in which, without that terrible blow, someone would have gone in to deal with the tunnels in Gaza.''
Katz also said Israel will not withdraw from the territories the IDF captured in Syria either. ``This is the security doctrine. The IDF must be on the enemy's turf and protect the communities from within the territory itself.''
Earlier Wednesday, the Lebanese newspaper Ad-Diyar reported that the second round of Israel-Lebanon talks is set to take place in Washington on Wednesday under U.S. mediation, focused on defining the south Lebanon pilot zones to be handed to Lebanon's Armed Forces, as well as ways to strengthen the cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah.
According to the report, the U.S. Central Command has been tasked with establishing a military operations room to oversee, monitor and track the situation in southern Lebanon.
The reporting suggests that this new operations room will work with the ``deconfliction cell'' whose creation was announced at U.S.-Iran talks in Switzerland this week, paving the way for the dismantling of the existing mechanism that was set up in 2024 between Israel, the United States and Lebanon.
According to Lebanese daily Al Akhbar, Israel is demanding that Lebanon's army be stationed in the Ali al-Taher ridge and destroy Hezbollah's facilities under U.S. supervision. Israel is also demanding that Lebanon disclose the fate of the Israeli pilot Ron Arad, who went missing in Lebanon in 1986, and propose an offer to return his remains before Lebanese POWs are released, the report said.
Also according to the report, Israel is seeking to keep a foothold in the buffer zone in southern Lebanon and is requesting direct military coordination with Lebanon to carry out these measures.
Israeli and Lebanese representatives are set to meet on Wednesday at the U.S. State Department in Washington as part of the fifth round of direct negotiations since the end of the war with Iran.
The talks, which began Tuesday, are expected to continue for three days under the supervision of Dan Haller, an adviser to U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Discussions will focus on the terms of the cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah and the redeployment of the Lebanese army in southern Lebanon following the IDF's withdrawal.
The U.S.-brokered efforts to stabilize the border are complicated by a new Iran-U.S. understanding that has shifted the regional balance and, according to officials, strengthened Hezbollah's position while weakening Beirut's leverage.
Beirut is pressing ahead with direct negotiations even as the process is overshadowed by Iran's decision to insert Lebanon into its talks with the United States, and by concerns in the Lebanese capital that the Iran-U.S. understanding has weakened its bargaining position and raised doubts over the utility of the talks.
Lebanese officials have insisted that face-to-face negotiations with Israel are the only way to secure an end to the war raging since March 2, when armed group Hezbollah fired at Israel in support of Iran and triggered Israeli air and ground attacks that have killed more than 4,000 people in Lebanon.
Israel, meanwhile, has said Hezbollah's disarmament remains a central condition for any long-term arrangement and views the group as the main obstacle to a durable settlement.
Opening the talks on Tuesday, Israeli Ambassador Yechiel Leiter described the process as a ``train wreck'' and warned it was ``in danger of going off the rails,'' saying Hezbollah may have been ``emboldened'' by recent developments. He added that the original premise of the talks--that Iran would remain outside the framework--was now in question.
He added that ``there is a danger that Hezbollah has received a boost. There is no doubt that it feels strengthened and emboldened.'' Leiter also questioned whether dismantling Hezbollah still remains the foundation of the talks.
Meanwhile, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said he would accept ``nothing short of an end to the Israeli occupation in southern Lebanon'' and added that the current round of talks could prove ``decisive.''
According to an Israeli source, Israel is seeking solutions that would reduce Iranian involvement in southern Lebanon. The source said that during the negotiations, the Israeli team is expected to present a framework for a phased IDF withdrawal from parts of southern Lebanon, to be followed by the deployment of Lebanese army forces to those areas under U.S. backing.
The source added that it remains unclear whether an IDF withdrawal from the Beaufort Castle area is being considered at this stage.
Last month, Israeli troops captured a strategic mountain topped with a Crusader-built castle in southern Lebanon. The military said it intends to remain there until further notice, signaling a shift from previous operations in the area that were temporary.
The capture of Beaufort Castle near the city of Nabatieh came after days of intense fighting and airstrikes in nearby villages, where Israeli troops fought Hezbollah members in the rugged area. The Israeli push came despite a nominal cease-fire that has been in place since April 17. Israeli troops previously captured the castle in 1982 and held it until they withdrew from Lebanon in 2000.
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Ms. TLAIB. Mr. Speaker, what a great slogan for his campaign.
Israeli defense minister said that, in villages in south Lebanon: We are going to be destroying all the houses. The residents will never see them standing before their eyes again.
He never mentions Hezbollah.
The Israeli national security minister, in his own words said: All of Lebanon should burn . . . all of Lebanon should become our playground.
Since the beginning, Mr. Speaker, the Israeli political and military leaders have repeatedly stated that their aim is to implement the ``Gaza model'' in Lebanon.
Over the past 4 months, we have seen these horrific threats become a reality. This is a genocidal government that we are arming and supporting as they ethnically cleanse the Lebanese people.
Prominent figures in both Israel and the Trump administration are now openly rooting for the new Lebanese civil war to further destabilize the country and prolong this invasion. It is sickening.
Mr. Speaker, to the Lebanese Government, I say: Learn the lessons of the countries before you and the lessons of Lebanon's own history. The Israeli Government does not abide by any agreements. They have violated every single cease-fire in all the so-called peace agreements.
Time and time again, a cease-fire with Israel means: You cease; they fire.
Wake up. The so-called agreement is not protecting Lebanese people. This is about apartheid government and structure expanding into your country. Do not abandon your land and your people and become another subcontractor for the Israeli occupation.
Shame on those who separate Beirut with south Lebanon. Lebanon is Lebanon. They are one people. Letting outsiders divide your people will only lead to greater instability and another civil war.
Meanwhile, Mr. Speaker, on the ground, Lebanese people continue to endure horrific violence. The Israeli Government has killed 10 more Lebanese in the past 24 hours as we speak on this floor. The destruction of Lebanon continues with U.S. military support.
We must act now to save lives, no matter faith. We must end U.S. support for these atrocities and force an end to the Israeli Government's invasion and illegal military occupation of Lebanese territory.
This vote is not only about ending the invasion of Lebanon. It is about bringing an end to the disastrous war with Iran. It is connected. Israel's ongoing military occupation and campaign to destroy Lebanon threatens to undermine any chance of success for a peace deal and bring our troops home, to end the war with Iran, a war which has killed countless civilians and has caused extreme economic suffering for ordinary Americans right here at home, who are already struggling to make ends meet.
The American people are tired of watching their tax dollars fuel death, destruction, and endless war. They are tired of hearing that we don't have money for healthcare or childcare at home--
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Ms. TLAIB.--while watching U.S. bombs.
This vote on the Lebanon War Powers Resolution is clear.
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