President Joseph Aoun receiving the head of the Lebanese-Palestinian Dialogue Committee, Ramez Dimashkieh, in Baabda. (Credit: Lebanese presidency)
President Joseph Aoun met, Wednesday afternoon at the Baabda Palace, the head of the Lebanese-Palestinian Dialogue Committee, Ramez Dimashkieh, who updated him on ongoing contacts with the Palestinian side to discuss the mechanism for implementing the Lebanese authorities' decision to collect arms from Palestinian camps as part of the process of restoring the state's monopoly on armed force. This issue was agreed upon by Aoun and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on May 21 in Baabda, the presidency wrote on X.
The issue of disarming Palestinian camps, the necessity for the state not to delay the process and the pressures exerted by Hezbollah against the project were at the heart of a statement by the head of the Lebanese Forces (LF), Samir Geagea, released earlier in the day.
Geagea said that "the axis of resistance" was pressuring Lebanese officials to postpone the collection of weapons in Palestinian refugee camps, which is set to begin in mid-June and whose implementation would solidify the "seriousness" of the government on this issue.
"Day after day, it becomes increasingly clear that the axis of resistance is pressuring Lebanese officials to postpone the collection of Palestinian weapons, which was supposed to start in mid-June. On the other hand, the resistance group incites some secondary Palestinian factions to raise their voices, refusing to hand over weapons under a thousand and one pretexts," stated Geagea in a statement released by the state-run National News Agency (NNA).
'Schedule for collecting illegal Lebanese weapons'
Geagea called on the government to launch "seriously, publicly and firmly" the process of collecting Palestinian weapons in Beirut camps starting mid-month and to follow this measure with the collection of weapons in the camps in the north and the Bekaa before those in southern Lebanon. Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas, on a visit to Lebanon on May 21, committed to supporting the gradual withdrawal of weapons held by Palestinians in the camps. He said in a joint statement with the Lebanese president his attachment to Lebanese sovereignty. But the process faces immense challenges, as other Palestinian factions hold weapons, notably Hamas and Islamic Jihad, close to Hezbollah.
In a reference to Hezbollah's arsenal that he did not name, the LF chief reiterated his request "for a schedule to collect all illegal Lebanese weapons in the coming months."
"Any delay, procrastination, or slowdown will give the impression that the government is not serious, undermine the advances of the mandate, and return Lebanon to what it was over the past twenty years, God forbid!" stated Geagea, who has long opposed Hezbollah's weapons. Geagea called on President Joseph Aoun and the government to measure the challenge and make Lebanon "a real state having the monopoly of arms and the right to decide on war and peace like any other normal state in this world."
The process of disarming groups separate from the state and the state maintaining a monopoly on weapons was part of Aoun's inauguration speech and the ministerial declaration of the government. It is also an issue that the international community, led by the United States, has long advocated for. The president said he was ready for dialogue with Hezbollah regarding its arsenal, by far the biggest and most powerful armed group in the country. The party warned against any use of force and advocated for discussions on a "defense strategy."
Hezbollah opened a support front in Gaza on Oct. 8, 2023, from southern Lebanon, following the Hamas attack on Israel. In response, the Israeli army bombarded the south of the country, the Bekaa and the southern suburbs of Beirut, targeting party leaders, including its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah on Sept. 27, 2024, as well as civilians. Two months later, a cease-fire was signed between the two parties. But the Israeli army continues to carry out attacks on a near-daily basis.