Cabinet meeting starts at Grand Serail, Shiite ministers present

The Cabinet began a meeting on Tuesday, shortly after 3 p.m., at the Grand Serail — the first since it approved, on Friday, the Lebanese Army's plan to disarm militias in Lebanon, primarily Hezbollah, though the plan does not set a specific timeline.

The Shiite ministers, who had walked out of the previous session to protest the army’s proposed disarmament plan, are attending the meeting. Before the Cabinet began, Shiite Health Minister Rakan Nassereddine stated, "The army plays a vital role. We are an integral part of it, and we salute its patriotism."

The ministers will discuss a draft law establishing an Information Technology and Artificial Intelligence Ministry, whereas until now, these portfolios have fallen under a minister of state — namely, the Minister of the Displaced, Kamal Shehadi. The government will also review a draft law prepared by the Finance Ministry that aims to open an additional line of credit in the budget allocated to the Education Ministry to grant financial support to the private teachers' indemnity fund. Three draft decrees calling for reservists to return to active duty are also on the agenda. A draft decree on modifying customs duty tariffs will also be discussed.

The Agriculture Ministry is expected to request approval of a memorandum of understanding with the Agricultural Wealth and Water Resources Ministry of the Sultanate of Oman on sustainable development in agriculture, fisheries and food security. The Justice Ministry will present a draft agreement between the European Union and the Lebanese state in criminal justice (EUROJUST) and the authorization for the minister to sign it, as well as a draft decree to appoint the president and members of the Judicial Council.

The Health Ministry will seek approval to transfer a credit of 2,237,500,000,000 Lebanese liras for hospitalization expenses in public and private sectors and 447,500,000,000 Lebanese liras for the activation, renewal and rehabilitation of public hospitals and their staff.

The ministers will also call for increasing the fees for ministry advisers from 6 million Lebanese liras per month to 180 million pounds.