Lebanon: Disarming Palestinian refugee camps begins
Shafaq News – Beirut
On Thursday, Lebanon launched the first phase of a plan to collect weapons from Palestinian refugee camps.
The disarmament process, which comes in line with agreements reached between Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on May 21, began in Burj al-Barajneh camp, located in Beirut’s southern suburb, where the Lebanese Army received an initial batch of weapons from the Palestinian National Security Forces.
Ramez Dimashqiyah, Head of the Lebanese-Palestinian Dialogue Committee, noted that this marks the first step in a broader process, with additional handovers scheduled in the coming weeks at Burj al-Barajneh and other Palestinian camps across the country.
The initiative also follows decisions made during the joint meeting of the Lebanese-Palestinian Dialogue Committee on May 23, chaired by Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and attended by representatives from both Lebanese and Palestinian authorities, where the participants agreed on a clear implementation mechanism and a timeline to address the long-standing issue of weapons inside the camps.
The arms in Palestinian refugee camps have long been one of Lebanon’s most contentious security challenges.
The step comes amid heightened internal tensions and mounting international pressure on Beirut to enforce a broader disarmament policy, including the controversial decision to strip Hezbollah of its weapons—a move the group has openly rejected, accusing the Lebanese government of serving US and Israeli agendas.
