The Palestinian president is expected to visit Beirut to discuss handing over to the Lebanese state all weapons in Palestinian camps
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will visit Lebanon later in May to discuss the disarmament of the country’s Palestinian refugee camps, as Beirut seeks to monopolise all weapons .
Lebanese media reports said Abbas will visit Lebanon on 21 and 22 May to discuss the issue with his Lebanese counterpart, Joseph Aoun, and other top officials.
The reports say his visit aims to address the removal of Palestinian weapons from the camps, which the Palestinian Authority (PA) has “no objection to.”
Reports earlier this week said the Lebanese army had already begun preparations to disarm the Beddawi camp in north Lebanon, cutting off all roads leading in and out of the camp and leaving only one route accessible.
Lebanon has hosted hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in 12 refugee camps since they were forcibly expelled from their homeland upon the creation of Israel in 1948, an event known as the Nakba or the catastrophe
In a related development Lebanon has warned Hamas not to conduct any operations that compromise the country’s security or sovereignty, Beirut’s Supreme Defense Council said on Friday.
The announcement came with Lebanon facing growing US pressure to disarm armed groups outside state control following last year’s war between Israel and Hezbollah .
Both Hezbollah and Hamas are armed , funded and trained by Iran with the aim of increasing its influence in the region. Iran has been interfering the internal affairs of most of the countries in the region and uses its proxies like Hamas and Hezbollah to achieve its goals
The ceasefire that ended war in November 2024 called on Lebanon to disarm “all armed groups in Lebanon” and dismantle unauthorized military infrastructure.
President Joseph Aoun declared that the decision to disarm all non state forces has been made , but prefers to execute it diplomatically through dialogue . He has been under tremendous pressure to act quickly to allow for the construction of tens of thousands of homes that were destroyed in the war. None Lebanon’s friends are willing to provide any funds for reconstruction before Hezbollah and all armed militia’s are completely disarmed
New Arab