Lebanon seeks to disarm the terrorist group Hezbollah before the end of the year

The Lebanese government tasked the army on Tuesday with designing a plan to consolidate the State's exclusive control over the use of weapons throughout the country before the end of the year, a measure that represents a direct challenge to Hezbollah, which has rejected disarmament demands since last year's war with Israel.

The terrorist organization backed by Iran faces growing pressure from both its internal opponents and the U.S. government, which insists that Lebanese ministers publicly express their commitment to move forward with the disarmament of the group. There is concern that, if this doesn't happen, Israel could intensify its offensives against Lebanese territory.

This meeting, held at the presidential palace, marked the first time the cabinet formally addressed the issue of weapons in Hezbollah's hands, something that just two years ago, when the group was at the height of its influence, would have been unthinkable.

For almost six hours of meeting, the ministers analyzed different approaches. In a subsequent statement, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam announced that the army had been given the green light to formulate a plan to ensure that, before the end of the year, all weapons are under the control of six defined state security entities.

However, while the session was underway, Hezbollah's leader, Naim Qassem, publicly rejected the idea of disarmament. In a televised speech, he warned: "I hope you (Lebanese officials) don't waste time on storms provoked by external dictates."

Qassem warned that Hezbollah would respond if Israel launched a large-scale offensive against Lebanon, and maintained that any resolution regarding the group's weapons should arise from a consensual agreement with the organization itself.

"The strategy is not a timetable for disarmament," he declared, adding: "The issue has been simplified: give us weapons, but not national security. How is that possible? We don't accept it, because we consider ourselves an essential component of Lebanon."

As a sign of rejection, two Shiite ministers left the meeting before the official statement was approved. Two others did not attend the meeting because they were traveling.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Information, Paul Morcos, reported that the Lebanese army will have until the end of the month to present the requested plan. He added that the cabinet discussed the proposals presented by the United States regarding Hezbollah's disarmament, although consensus has not yet been reached, and the debate will continue in a new session this Thursday.

It should be recalled that in June, the U.S. envoy Thomas Barrack presented a roadmap to the Lebanese authorities, which contemplated the complete disarmament of Hezbollah as a condition for Israel to cease its attacks and withdraw its forces from five positions it still occupies in the south of the country. This plan included a key clause: that the Lebanese cabinet approve a firm resolution committing to disarm the terrorist organization backed by Iran.