Trump: Syria Should ‘Take Care of Hezbollah’ as Polls Show Syrians, Lebanese Turn Against Group

New polls show growing opposition to Hezbollah in Syria and Lebanon, as President Donald Trump publicly urged Israel to let Syria take a larger role against the Iranian-backed terror group.

The surveys, conducted in Arabic by YouGov for the Council for a Secure America, found majorities in both countries view Hezbollah’s role as harmful to their own security. The findings come as Washington pushes for regional de-escalation following the U.S.-Iran agreement and amid continued Israeli strikes against Hezbollah in Lebanon.

In Syria, 68% of respondents described Hezbollah’s involvement in the country as negative, including 52% who called it “very negative.” Only 6% viewed Hezbollah’s role positively, while 26% were unsure.

The poll also found that 57% of Syrians believe peace with Israel is likely in the future, compared with 16% who said it was unlikely. A 53% majority said they would support the new Syrian government signing a security arrangement with Israel, while 11% opposed such a move.

“Roughly eighteen months after the fall of the Assad regime, Syrians have rendered a clear verdict on the militia that helped keep that regime in power,” said Jennifer Sutton, executive director of the Council for a Secure America. “A Syrian public saying such things on the record would have been unthinkable a few years ago.”

In Lebanon, 59% of residents said Hezbollah’s military presence has a negative impact on the country’s security, compared with 11% who viewed it positively. The survey also found that 41% of Lebanese respondents consider eventual peace between Israel and Lebanon likely, while 27% said it was unlikely.

A larger majority, 58%, said they support President Joseph Aoun’s efforts to strengthen the Lebanese Army and negotiate Hezbollah’s disarmament, so that all armed forces operate under government authority.

“For years the conventional wisdom held that Lebanese society was immovably opposed to any relationship with Israel. This data demolishes that assumption,” Sutton said.

Trump addressed Hezbollah and Lebanon on Tuesday at the G7 summit in France, where he criticized the length and scale of Israel’s campaign against the terror group.

“I suggested to Israel to let Syria take care of Hezbollah,” Trump said. “’Cause to be honest with you, I think they’d do a better job of doing it.”

He added, “If Israel can’t do the job without killing everyone else, he’ll do the job, Syria will do the job.”

Trump also said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “has to be more responsible with respect to Lebanon,” while saying he was not disappointed in him personally.

Israel says its campaign in Lebanon is aimed at stopping Hezbollah attacks and removing the terror group’s military infrastructure near the northern border. Trump described Iran as the larger issue and linked his criticism of Israel’s Lebanon campaign to his broader effort to stabilize the region after the agreement with Tehran.

The surveys were conducted from May 26 to June 1 among 252 Syrian adults and 260 Lebanese adults, with a margin of error of plus or minus five percentage points. The Council for a Secure America supports strong U.S.-Israel ties and the Abraham Accords.

The polling also showed some cooling in Syria since January. Support for a security arrangement with Israel fell from 64% to 53%, while positive views of the U.S. role in Syria dropped from 65% to 51%. Still, both positions remained majority views in the latest survey.