Salam says no turning back on arms monopoly decision
In an interview, published Thursday in Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper, Salam said that it is natural for the state's monopoly on arms to be discussed in the next cabinet session, in implementation of the Taif Agreement and the ceasefire agreement reached in late November with Israel. He said U.S. envoy Tom Barrack's paper provided practical ideas for this.
President Joseph Aoun also called Thursday for Hezbollah to give up its weapons, a day after the group's chief doubled down on its refusal to disarm.
He said the U.S. presented Lebanon with "draft ideas to which we have made fundamental amendments that will be presented to the Cabinet early next week."
Under the Lebanese proposal, there would be an "immediate cessation of Israeli hostilities" in Lebanon, including airstrikes and targeted killing, a full withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon and the release of Lebanese prisoners held in Israel, Aoun said.
Lebanon, for its part, would implement the "withdrawal of the weapons of all armed forces, including Hezbollah, and their surrender to the Lebanese Army."
Salam denied any disagreements between the Lebanese officials regarding the state's monopoly on arms and said he is in "full and continuous consultations" with Aoun and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri.
He added that disarming Hezbollah and other armed groups is "not a provocation to anyone but a fundamental part of the President's inaugural speech and the government's ministerial statement." Hezbollah and ally Amal MPs gave twice their confidence to Salam's government and backed President Aoun in a second round of voting last January.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
LBCI
an hour ago
- LBCI
PM Salam calls for exclusive state control of weapons on Army Day
On the occasion of Lebanese Army Day, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam emphasized the importance of consolidating state authority and limiting weapons possession to the Lebanese Armed Forces, in a message posted on X. 'One army for one people in one nation,' Salam wrote, paying tribute to the military's sacrifices and its role in safeguarding the country's sovereignty and independence. He honored the Lebanese army's personnel and fallen soldiers, describing the institution as 'the symbol of our sovereignty, the embodiment of our independence, and the ultimate guardian of our security.' The prime minister stressed that Lebanon's recovery hinges on ensuring that the army remains the sole legitimate bearer of arms. 'There can be no salvation for Lebanon without serious efforts to ensure that all weapons are in the hands of our army alone,' he stated. Salam also called for the full extension of the state's authority across Lebanese territory 'with its own forces,' in line with the Taif Agreement and the government's ministerial statement.
L'Orient-Le Jour
an hour ago
- L'Orient-Le Jour
Aid set up by Israel is a 'deadly trap,' HRW says
Israeli forces have set up in Gaza a "defective and militarized" aid distribution system, turning this humanitarian operation into "real bloodbaths" and a "deadly trap," according to a report from the organization Human Rights Watch (HRW). "The killings by Israeli forces of Palestinians seeking food are war crimes," this new report published Friday says. "The disastrous humanitarian situation [in Gaza] is the direct result of Israel's use of starvation as a weapon of war — a war crime — as well as its intentional and ongoing blockade of humanitarian aid and basic services," the human rights organization adds. After 22 months of a devastating war sparked by a Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, the Gaza Strip is facing a "widespread famine," according to the United Nations, and is completely dependent on humanitarian aid distributed by trucks or airdrops. Israel partially eased, at the end of May, a total blockade imposed at the beginning of March on the Palestinian enclave, which had led to severe shortages of food, medicine, and other basic necessities. "Deadly incidents have occurred almost daily at the four aid distribution sites managed" in Palestinian territory by the GHF [Gaza Humanitarian Foundation,] an entity supported by Israel and the United States, but with which international organizations refuse to work. "At least 859 Palestinians have been killed while trying to obtain food at these GHF sites between May 27 and July 31, most by the Israeli army, according to the United Nations," HRW notes. "Not only are Israeli forces deliberately starving Palestinian civilians in Gaza, but they are also shooting almost daily at those desperately seeking food for their families," accuses Belkis Wille, deputy director of HRW's Crisis and Conflict Division, quoted in the report. "Israeli forces, supported by the United States and private contractors, have set up a defective and militarized humanitarian aid distribution system, turning aid distribution operations into real bloodbaths," Wille says. This "deadly trap" system backed by the United States must "be abandoned," the HRW report insists.
L'Orient-Le Jour
an hour ago
- L'Orient-Le Jour
Salam's wishes for the army's 80th anniversary: 'One army for one people in one homeland'
In the early hours of a day marking the 80th anniversary of the Lebanese Army, against a backdrop of political discussions on the state's monopoly on arms, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam on Friday wished Lebanon "one army for one people, in one homeland." In a message posted on the X platform, a day after a landmark speech by President Joseph Aoun in which he directly addressed Hezbollah and its supporters, calling on them to "bet on the State," the head of government paid tribute to "our proud army, for the sacrifices of its soldiers, officers and martyrs." Believing that the troops are "the emblem of our sovereignty and independence," he emphasized that the army represents "a solid bulwark for our security," at a time when Hezbollah positions itself as "resistance" in the face of Israel. The Israeli state continues to carry out daily attacks in several regions of Lebanon, particularly the South and the Bekaa. A series of strikes Thursday night targeted several sectors in the heights of Jezzine as well as in the Bekaa, killing at least two people, according to information from our correspondent. The Israeli army said it struck Hezbollah missile production sites. 'No salvation for Lebanon without a monopoly on arms' "There will be no salvation for Lebanon without serious work to entrust the monopoly on arms to the army, and there will be no stability if state authority does not cover the entire national territory, with its own forces," added the prime minister. He concluded by specifying that these demands are included in the Taif Agreement, concluded in 1989 to put an end to the civil war (1975-1990), and in the ministerial declaration of his government. Salam is scheduled to chair a Cabinet meeting next Tuesday devoted to the issue of the monopoly on arms, which risks causing the collapse of the cabinet if Hezbollah persists in refusing to hand over its arsenal. The previous day, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri had said that the army was "at the heart of the hopes of the Lebanese in terms of security, defense of the land and of the human being, and for the resurrection of Lebanon." Meanwhile, Defense Minister Michel Menassa said that "implementing Security Council Resolution 1701 in all its aspects will help stabilize and consolidate security in the South (...) and strengthen the credibility of the Lebanese state thanks to its legitimate forces." Resolution 1701, which ended the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah, serves as the framework for the ceasefire agreement that put an end to the open war between these same belligerents for 13 months, from October 2023 to November 2024. It notably provides for "the disarmament of all armed groups in Lebanon, so that (...) only the State possesses weapons and exercises its authority."
