Hezbollah will respond decisively to any Israeli attack and will rely on Iran's continued military and diplomatic backing, a Hezbollah MP said, Iranian hardline media reported on June 20. 

The comments point to friction between the Iran-backed group and Beirut after Israel and Hezbollah agreed a ceasefire, a US official said on June 19, following intense Israeli air strikes in southern Lebanon that killed 47 people. The agreement came into force at 16:00 hours local time on June 19. 

Ali Fayyad, a prominent member of Hezbollah's parliamentary bloc, said the deal reached between Iran and the United States, which stressed the need for a comprehensive ceasefire in Lebanon, alongside Iran's military and diplomatic support, allowed the group to speak of an effective balance with Israel that opened the prospect of forcing a withdrawal from Lebanese territory.

Iran was committed to supporting the Lebanese people and ready to continue that role until Israeli forces left the country, Fayyad said, speaking at a memorial event.

He criticised the Lebanese government's stance as passive, accusing it of submitting to US dictates and pursuing direct negotiations with Israel. The government's priority was the monopoly of arms rather than the liberation of territory, Fayyad said.

The developments arising from the US-Iran deal had placed the Lebanese government before a new test, he said, and it should hold to the ceasefire as a priority and be firm in preventing Israeli freedom of movement and in setting an unconditional timetable for Israeli withdrawal.

Following the comment of his colleague, Hezbollah Secretary General Naim Qassem said a US-led plan to eliminate the group and entrench Israeli occupation has failed, vowing that Israel would withdraw from Lebanese territory, Al-Manar reported on June 19.

The speech points to Hezbollah's effort to project resilience after a damaging conflict with Israel, framing its survival as a victory even as Israeli forces remain on Lebanese soil and the wider US-Iran deal leaves the withdrawal question unsettled.

Qassem said Israel's war observed no rules in killing civilians and causing destruction in an effort to force the group to surrender. He accused Washington of leading a plan to end the group's existence in Lebanon, listing 12 elements he said made up the strategy.

These included the Israeli war itself, the closing of air, sea and land crossings to block weapons, the prevention of reconstruction, a financial siege, and attempts to incite strife between the Lebanese army and Hezbollah and along Sunni-Shia and Shia-Christian lines, all of which he said had failed.

Setting out Hezbollah's response in a further 12 points, Qassem said the group had reviewed its military structure, modified its combat methods towards hit-and-run operations rather than holding ground, and developed weapons and drone capabilities.

His comments come as US special representative Steve Wiktoff is travelling to Switzerland, where negotiations with Iran over a final nuclear agreement are expected to begin as part of the wider agreement.

The initial plan was for Vice-President J.D. Vance to lead a delegation, but he later withdrew to attend meetings with the Iranians on June 19 following US President Donald Trump's signing a peace agreement with Iran on June 18 in Versaille France, in front of the French president. 

According to an Axios report, Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, is already in Switzerland discussing with Iran's teams. Israel's Ynet reported that Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also plans to arrive on June 20, though the source stressed that the trip is not final and could still change, the newspaper reported.

The Trump administration has been pressing Israel to moderate its strikes in Lebanon in an effort to enable progress with Iran, but the two allies have appeared to have separated in recent hours, with Vance criticising the Israeli cabinet on June 19.