People walk through an alleyway in the Burj al-Barajneh Palestinian refugee camp, in Beirut’s southern suburbs, on May 20, 2025. (Credit: Joseph Eid/AFP)
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is set to address the issue of arms within Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon during his visit to Beirut starting Wednesday, said a member of his delegation on Tuesday.
"The issue of Palestinian arms in the camps will be part of the discussions between President Abbas" and Lebanese authorities, stated Ahmad Majdalani, a member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), who will be part of the visit.
Earlier in May, a Lebanese government official asserted to AFP that Abbas would discuss the "extension of authority" of the Lebanese government to Palestinian refugee camps, which have remained outside of its control.
Approximately 250,000 Palestinian refugees live in these overcrowded camps in Lebanon, where not only Abbas's Fatah organization but also Hamas and other armed Palestinian factions have a presence.
In late April, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun noted that authorities were working "to remove heavy and medium weapons from the entire Lebanese territory" and that he anticipated discussing the disarmament of Palestinian camps with Abbas. By a longstanding agreement, the security in these Palestinian camps is managed by Palestinian factions, with Lebanese military forces not entering them.
According to Majdalani, Abbas's visit coincides with a "new era in Lebanon, marked by Arab and American support".
At the outset of the Gaza conflict, which began with a Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, Iran-backed Lebanese Hezbollah opened another front against Israel, launching rockets from southern Lebanon along Israel's northern border, claiming it acted in support of the Palestinian Islamist movement.
The hostilities escalated into an open war, with Israel conducting intense bombardments from September to November 2024, primarily targeting Hezbollah strongholds in Lebanon. A cease-fire took effect on November 27 in this conflict, in which Hezbollah, a Hamas ally, emerged significantly weakened.