The Lebanese Forces (LF) denounced on Tuesday the remarks of the deputy prime minister, Tarek Mitri, on the disarmament of Hezbollah, stating that it hindered the mandate of President Joseph Aoun.

When asked about the disarmament of Hezbollah and U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701, which stipulates that the Lebanese state must have exclusive control of arms on its territory, Mitri said it was "impossible for the government to set a timeline for the withdrawal of Hezbollah's arms by force," in an interview with the U.S.-funded Arabic channel Al-Hura.

The LF stated that Mitri repudiated "the Taif Agreement, international resolutions, the recent cease-fire agreement, the inaugural address [of President Aoun], and the ministerial declaration," which prioritized reinstating the state's monopoly on arms.

Samir Geagea's party, which has four ministers in the government formed by Nawaf Salam on Feb. 8, also highlighted that the deputy prime minister said that "the army must be equipped before it can work on disarmament."

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An issue to be tackled the other way around

In his interview, Mitri also highlighted "the blatant Israeli violation of the cease-fire agreement and Resolution 1701," illustrated by the multiple strikes carried out since the truce took effect on Nov. 27 and by the fact that Israel still occupies territories in southern Lebanon from which it was supposed to withdraw. He also told Al-Hura that "the Lebanese army is fully fulfilling its duty south of the Litani by dismantling Hezbollah depots and reinforcing control over the area concerned by the truce agreement" between Israel and Hezbollah.

But for the LF, the issue should be addressed the other way around, as they stated that "it is impossible to properly equip the army as long as there are arms outside the state's control" and that it is difficult to work on "rebuilding and revitalizing the economy as long as there are weapons beyond the state's control."

"Lebanon's friends in the Arab world and internationally will continue to boycott the country until the government decides to reclaim, as soon as possible, the decision of war and peace and hand all illegal weapons to the Lebanese army," the statement said.

With his remarks, Mitri "severely damaged the image of the current government and hindered the new era," the LF stated.

The commitments mentioned in the inaugural address of President Aoun, as well as in the ministerial declaration for the newly formed government, which gained the confidence of Parliament, notably concern "the implementation of the cease-fire agreement, international resolutions 1559, 1680, and 1701, and adherence to the principles of the Taif Agreement."

The secretary general of Hezbollah, Naim Qassem, made ambiguous statements on Sunday regarding the disarmament issue. Saying that Hezbollah had entered "a new phase," which was not a "change of principles" but an "evolution of methods," he expressed his support for the principle of "monopoly of arms" by the state while stating that it only concerned the disarmament of "militias, and not the resistance."