Mitri: Army 'about to begin second phase' of disarmament plan

BEIRUT — Deputy Prime Minister Tarek Mitri said Wednesday the Lebanese Army is “about to move to the second phase” of a five-phase plan to disarm Hezbollah, but that no “precise timetable” will be set for that stage.

Speaking at a conference in Beirut organized by the Carnegie Middle East Center, Mitri said the army is ready to begin expanding its exclusive authority over the area between the Litani and Awali rivers.

Mitri said Army Chief Rodolph Haykal told the Cabinet in monthly briefings that the first phase of the plan is “almost complete,” except in areas still under Israeli occupation. Israel continues to occupy at least five hills in southern Lebanon, despite a cease-fire agreement with Hezbollah that took effect in late November 2024 and that calls for a full Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory.

‘Progress’ in disarmament

“If the support meetings for the army in Paris are successful, and if an agreement is reached within the [cease-fire] ‘mechanism’ on what is known as the verification process” of disarmament south of the Litani, Mitri said, “the Lebanese Army will be better positioned to start the second phase and, we hope, achieve gradual progress in implementing the Hezbollah disarmament plan.”

He praised what he described as progress already made.

A meeting in Paris on Thursday is set to discuss the army’s needs and will be attended by Haykal, U.S. envoy Morgan Ortagus, Saudi envoy Yazid bin Farhan and French Middle East adviser Anne-Claire Legendre.

A meeting of the cease-fire monitoring committee, known as the “mechanism,” is scheduled for Friday. It will be the second time the panel convenes with civilian negotiators from both the Lebanese and Israeli sides.

Mitri said Haykal “was very clear” in Cabinet discussions about the obstacles slowing progress, citing the need to strengthen the army’s capabilities and Israel’s continued violations of the cease-fire.

“As long as Israel does not abide by the cessation of hostilities, it will be much more difficult for us to move forward,” Mitri said, adding that Haykal was describing operational difficulties, not setting political conditions for disarming Hezbollah. Those constraints, he said, explain why the army set a timetable for the first phase but has avoided doing so for the remaining four.

The first phase of the plan focuses on the area south of the Litani River, about 30 kilometers north of the Israeli border along the coast, and is due to be completed by the end of 2025. Subsequent phases would cover the area between the Litani and Awali rivers, the dismantling of Hezbollah infrastructure in Beirut and its southern suburbs and nearby areas, then the Bekaa Valley. The fifth phase would extend to all Lebanese territory.

Hezbollah has so far refused to disarm north of the Litani River.