BEIRUT: The Lebanese Cabinet on Friday received the Lebanese Armed Forces’ plan to restrict the possession of weapons to state personnel on Friday.
While the Cabinet “took note” of the plan, four ministers from Hezbollah and its ally, the Amal Movement, along with a neutral Shiite minister, walked out at the start of the session in protest over the plan.
Since disarmament talks began earlier this year, Hezbollah has firmly rejected handing over its weapons. Despite repeated objections, the government last month confirmed its intention to proceed, giving the Lebanese Army Command a month to develop, present, and implement the plan by the end of the year.
Hezbollah and the Amal Movement objected, citing Israel’s failure to fulfill its ceasefire obligations to withdraw from occupied positions and cease violations, attacks, and assassinations on Lebanese soil.
Last November, Hezbollah negotiated a ceasefire agreement with Israel via Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and a US mediator. While the party agreed to all the provisions of the agreement, the Lebanese government has yet to receive the full details.
Israel refuses to implement the agreement before Lebanon implements the clause related to the disarmament of Hezbollah. The Israeli stance was communicated to US diplomat Tom Barrak less than two weeks ago.
Though Hezbollah and Amal ministers had agreed to the government’s ministerial statement — which included arms restriction clauses — they exited the Cabinet when Army Commander Gen. Rodolphe Heikal began presenting the plan.
“We withdrew from the session, not from the government, in line with our positions,” Hezbollah Minister of Labour Mohammed Haidar said after leaving the Presidential Palace. “Because this session is a continuation of the session to decide on the arms monopoly, we cannot continue attending it. The position is political and directed against one item: arms. We participated in the discussion of four items on the agenda, and when the discussion reached the arms item, we withdrew.”
He added that while the group “respects the Army commander and the military establishment,” it “will await the results of the session to build upon what is required, and contacts are still ongoing.”
In a statement to Hezbollah’s Al-Manar TV station, Haidar said that “any decision taken during the session in the absence of the Shiite community is contrary to the national charter.”
Minister of Administrative Development Fadi Makki, who has maintained a neutral stance on the issue and faced pressure from Hezbollah in previous sessions, addressed President Joseph Aoun before departing Friday’s meeting, saying: “I place my resignation in your hands if the situation continues to deteriorate.”
A political source who attended the session explained to Arab News that this step “does not mean a verbal resignation, but rather a position to avoid further embarrassment from Hezbollah and the Amal Movement, as well as from the president and prime minister.”
After the Cabinet meeting, Mekki said: “I sought, as much as I could, to overcome the obstacles. I was among those calling to discuss the Army’s plan and leaving the issue of the timeframe to the discretion of the Army Command, an institution we consider the guarantor of the nation’s unity and sovereignty.
“However, given the current situation and the withdrawal of a key component, I cannot bear the burden of such a decision again, and I have decided to withdraw from the session. I stated that if my resignation from the government serves the national interest, then I am prepared to place this resignation at the disposal of President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam.”
Mekki urged ministers and political leaders to discuss the plan within the framework of the agreed-upon ministerial statement concerning the restriction of weapons to the state and its institutions. He emphasized the need for thoughtful deliberation and prioritizing the “nation’s interests, the welfare of the south, and civil peace above all else.”
Finance Minister Yassin Jaber, the Amal Movement representative in the government, said: “We withdrew from the session, but not from the government, and we will participate in the next Cabinet session and await the final statement to build on it.”
Calls circulated on social media for a gathering in Beirut’s southern suburbs to organize a motorcycle rally in support of Hezbollah and the Amal Movement. However, a security source said the call was “incorrect.”
The Lebanese Armed Forces took strict measures in public squares and at the entrances to Beirut’s southern suburbs before the end of the Cabinet session to prevent any protests from spiraling out of control.
Interior Minister Ahmad Hajjar confirmed before entering that “the security situation is under control, and God willing, nothing will happen during or outside the session.”
According to reports, the Shiite ministers cited “the Israeli attacks that occurred during the last 72 hours deep in southern Lebanon, which led to the killing and wounding of civilians, in addition to targeting Hezbollah members,” in expressing their positions during the Cabinet session.
