Cabinet begins debate on exclusive state control of weapons
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L'Orient-Le Jour
6 hours ago
- L'Orient-Le Jour
What does the US proposal for Hezbollah's disarmament look like?
BEIRUT — During its second meeting convened these week to discuss a state monopoly on arms, Cabinet saw all of its Shiite ministers walk out following a refusal to discuss a plan drawn up by the United States that lays out a "roadmap" for how Lebanon should go about disarming Hezbollah, a group that was once one of the most powerful non-state actors in the world. The U.S. proposal sets the end of the year as a deadline for Hezbollah's disarmament, a timeline that Cabinet adopted during Tuesday's meeting. Instead of adopting the American plan directly, which was delivered to Lebanon through U.S. envoy Tom Barrack, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam's ministers assigned responsibility for drawing up a roadmap to the Lebanese Army, which it has been tasked to submit by the end of August. Hezbollah and its allies accused the government of "bowing to foreign pressure" and categorically refused to discuss disarmament so long as Israeli attacks against Lebanon and its occupation of several areas of the South was ongoing. Cabinet was set to discuss the U.S. proposal during Thursday's meeting, which was adjourned shortly after the walkout. According to copy of the Cabinet agenda reviewed by Reuters, the U.S. plan, drawn up by the U.S. State Department, sets out the most detailed steps yet for disarming Hezbollah. It aims to "extend and stabilize" a cease-fire agreement brokered in November, that, while ending an all-out war, has not prevented Israel from continuing its attacks against the country. "The urgency of this proposal is underscored by the increasing number of complaints regarding Israeli violations of the current cease-fire, including airstrikes and cross-border operations, which risk triggering a collapse of the fragile status quo," it said. Here is an outline of the U.S. proposal that brought Thursday's Cabinet meeting to a halt: Phase 1: The Lebanese government issues a decree within 15 days committing to Hezbollah's full disarmament by Dec. 31, 2025. In this phase, Israel would also cease ground, air and sea military operations. Phase 2: Lebanon begins implementing the disarmament plan within 60 days, with the government approving "a detailed [Lebanese Army] deployment plan to support the plan to bring all arms under the authority of the state." This plan will specify disarmament targets. Israel begins withdrawing from positions it holds in southern Lebanon and Lebanese prisoners held by Israel would be released in coordination with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Phase 3: Within 90 days, Israel will withdraw from the final two of the five points it holds, and funding will be secured to initiate rubble removal in Lebanon and infrastructure rehabilitation in preparation for reconstruction. Phase 4: Within 120 days, Hezbollah's remaining heavy weapons must be dismantled, including missiles and drones. The United States, Saudi Arabia, France, Qatar and other friendly states will organize an economic conference to support the Lebanese economy and reconstruction and to "implement President Trump's vision for the return of Lebanon as a prosperous and viable country."
L'Orient-Le Jour
6 hours ago
- L'Orient-Le Jour
Hezbollah calls on government to 'correct its course' on disarmament
BEIRUT — Hezbollah has called on the government to "correct its course" as Cabinet meets for a second time this week to discuss a state monopoly on arms that centers around Hezbollah's disarmament, for which U.S. envoy Tom Barrack submitted a proposed "roadmap" drawn up by Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Meeting under the chairmanship of its leader, Mohammad Raad, Hezbollah's parliamentary bloc issued a statement denouncing U.S. policy and protesting against what it said was the government's "yielding to foreign pressures" and disregarding the interests of Lebanon and national unity. "When Prime Minister Nawaf Salam adopts the American envoy's roadmap, he is going against all the commitments he made in his ministerial statement, as well as those in the president's inauguration speech." Cabinet concluded its Tuesday meeting on the topic having decided to task the Lebanese Army with drawing up a plan for the disarmament of all armed groups in Lebanon by the end of the year, which it should present to Cabinet by the end of August. Two ministers associated with the Amal Movement and Hezbollah, Rakan Nassereddine and Tamara al-Zein, walked out in protest, and Minister Fady Makki made his reservations known. Hezbollah responded the next day, saying it was not concerned by the government's decision. Hezbollah's parliamentary bloc described the government and its leader's adoption of the U.S. roadmap as a "suspicious and unreasonable haste," considering that it "disregards respect for the national pact and the principles of the Taif Agreement, which enshrines Lebanon's right to self-defense." "Desperate attempts to target the weapons of 'the Resistance' are a free gift to the Israeli enemy and would strip Lebanon of one of its main assets against blind Zionist violence," the statement added. The bloc called on the government to "correct course by reversing its decision." Kabalan: Stability or a powder keg? For his part, Jaafarite Mufti Ahmad Kabalan, a Shiite cleric close to Hezbollah, issued a short statement ahead of Thursday's Cabinet meeting, warning that it might "put the country on the path toward stability and respecting national interests, or it may inflame the heart of its people, disregarding their sovereign interests." "No one has an excuse, silence is a grave crime, and everyone is concerned with protecting the country's higher political and sovereign interests," the sheikh said. "There can be no neutrality in such an existential cause. Any constitutional coup or reckless national gamble will put the country at the center of an ordeal that could be the worst."
LBCI
7 hours ago
- LBCI
Putin says UAE could host Trump summit
Russian President Vladimir Putin Thursday named the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as a potential location for an upcoming summit with U.S. counterpart Donald Trump. "We have many friends who are willing to help us organize such events. One of our friends is the president of the United Arab Emirates," Putin said standing next to UAE leader Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, adding "it (the UAE) would be one of the quite suitable places." AFP
