JERUSALEM – With the U.S. calling for a complete Syrian withdrawal and the dismantlement of all Lebanese militia groups, Hezbollah vowed yesterday it will not be disarmed and said it plans to be a major force in any new government.

"[Hezbollah] will not disarm even if the Israelis withdraw from Shebaa Farms," the party's political bureau spokesman, Ghaleb Abu Zeinab, said yesterday. "Shebaa Farms do not define the resistance's arms. Even if Shebaa Farms are liberated, Hezbollah's arms are here to protect Lebanon from any Israeli attack and create a balance of terror in the face of Israel."

The Shebba Farms is a largely unpopulated area near South Lebanon that Hezbollah considers territory occupied by Israel. It has vowed to fight the Jewish state until the land is returned, even though the international community certified Israel's withdrawal from Lebanon in 2000 was complete. Analysts say Hezbollah uses its stance on the Shebba Farms as an excuse to justify continued attacks against Israel.

Hezbollah may have been buoyed by a visit last week from Druze opposition leader Walid Jumblatt, who ventured into the southern suburbs of Lebanon, considered a Hezbollah stronghold, to meet with the Lebanese group.

Senior Lebanese political sources told WND Jumblatt pledged to Hezbollah leader Hassan Nesrallah full support for the continued arming of Hezbollah in exchange for the group's backing of Jumblatt's party in the upcoming Lebanese elections.

The political dynamics in Lebanon are such that the Parliament is almost evenly split between the pro-Syrian camp and the opposition, with Syria-backed Hezbollah holding the deciding votes. If the Lebanese militia group backs the opposition, it would likely tilt governing power in the opposition's direction.

Former Lebanese Prime Minister Michel Aoun blasted Jumblatt's bargaining.

"Hezbollah must be disarmed. Period," Aoun told WorldNetDaily. "We don't need any more resistance groups in Lebanon. Syria is getting out. Israel is not occupying anything. It's past time for Hezbollah to be dismantled."

The Syrian government this week promised to remove its nearly 20,000 troops and hundreds of intelligence agents from Lebanon by April 30, United Nations envoy Terje Roed-Larsen announced at a joint news conference with Syrian Foreign Minister Farouq al-Shara.

But the continued military presence of Hezbollah would give both Syria and Iran a foundation inside Lebanon. Syria is a major financial backer of Hezbollah, and Iran has been supplying Hezbollah with money, weapons and intelligence.

Opposition sources say Iranian Revolutionary Guard units are fortifying key early-warning stations and Hezbollah bases that Syria has pledged to vacate. They report Iran has made preparations to supply Hezbollah bases with tanks, rockets and missiles, and is conducting high-level talks about using Hezbollah to create a larger pro-Iranian Shiite force in Lebanon.

Israel accuses Hezbollah of backing Palestinian terrorism. It says Hezbollah has created a terror apparatus of Palestinian militants in the West Bank receiving full-time salaries from the Lebanese group and was partly responsible for a February suicide attack outside a nightclub in Tel Aviv that killed five.

Hezbollah commands a large following among Lebanon's 1.5 million strong Shiite community and boasts 12 parliamentary seats – the largest Shia party in the country.

The group provides the Shiite population with social welfare services ranging from education to medical care and was able to produce large numbers at a pro-Syrian rally several weeks ago where Nasrallah called for Damascus to keep its troops in the country.

Aaron Klein is WorldNetDaily's Jerusalem bureau chief, whose past interview subjects have included Yasser Arafat, Ehud Barak, Shlomo Ben Ami and leaders of the Taliban. His article was first published in WorldNetDaily.com