For the First Time.. A Timeline in Lebanon for the Disarmament of Hezbollah

SadaNews - All eyes are on the Lebanese government session scheduled for next Tuesday, which will approach the issue of Hezbollah's weapons for the first time amid international pressure, and the reaffirmation by President Joseph Aoun of his "commitment to a state with a single weapon." Aoun stated in his recent speech two days ago on the occasion of Army Day that "it is his duty and the duty of all political parties through the Council of Ministers, the High Defense Council, the Parliament, and all political forces to seize this historical opportunity and push without hesitation to affirm the exclusivity of arms in the hands of the army and security forces."

While the atmosphere of ambiguity and uncertainty looms over the path that the session will take, communications have intensified among various political forces in an attempt to secure maximum consensus around the agenda.

The main question that forms the focus of these communications is related to the attendance of the Shia ministers from the Amal Movement and Hezbollah at the session, knowing that two of them will be absent due to their presence outside of Lebanon.

Hezbollah and its ally, the Amal Movement, have long threatened to use the "national pact" as a card against previous governments when their demands and aspirations are not met.

In this context, special information for Al-Arabiya channel indicated that "the national pact is guaranteed for the government session on Tuesday, and the five Shia ministers will not boycott the session discussing the exclusivity of arms."

Observers suggested that the government would approve the item of limiting arms to the state and then delegate the High Defense Council to proceed with the implementation procedures of the government’s decision.

Additionally, special information for the channel suggested that Army Commander Rudolf Haikal "may" attend the upcoming session to discuss the army's leadership plan for implementing the mechanism of arms limitation.

In this context, Minister of Agriculture Nizar Hani clarified to "Al-Arabiya Net" that "the framework of the session and its titles were previously defined by the President’s speech on Army Day." He expressed hope that the framework for the next phase would be organized clearly by setting a timeline for the handover of arms alongside calls to halt Israeli violations against Lebanon and for the Israeli army to withdraw from the points it occupies and release Lebanese prisoners, while praising the role of the resistance in liberating the land and defeating the Israeli occupation."

Hani also confirmed that "most components of the government agreed to apply the ministerial statement, especially concerning the issue of the exclusivity of arms and extending the state's authority over all territories."

As Hezbollah continues to refuse to hand over its arms, according to the speeches of the party’s Secretary-General Sayyed Nasrallah, activists expressed their fears on social media about Hezbollah fabricating security incidents in the streets and repeating the scenario of May 7, 2008, when it used its weapons to take over the streets of Beirut.

However, the Minister of Agriculture (associated with the Progressive Socialist Party) ruled out the "repetition of the May 7 scenario if the government decides to set a timeline for handing over Hezbollah’s arms, saying, "We hope that the scenario of boycotts and security incidents will be a thing of the past."

For his part, Ali Amin, the editor-in-chief of the "Janoubia" website, considered that the idea of May 7 has ended and is suicidal because Hezbollah is fully aware of how to take refuge in the state. He stated in remarks to Al-Arabiya Net / Al-Hadath Net, "Hezbollah will not boycott state institutions (the government and the parliament) even in the worst circumstances, and will not fabricate any problem with any political party because it knows it is in a difficult situation and has no allies," as he put it.

Hezbollah had preempted the upcoming Tuesday session by moving towards the two main decision-making sites in the country, the presidency and the army command, where the head of the parliamentary bloc, MP Muhammad Raad, visited Aoun. Meanwhile, the head of the Coordination and Liaison Unit, Wafiq Safa, headed to the Ministry of Defense and met with the army commander. Sources from the party promoted that the atmosphere of the meetings was positive.

Since last September, Hezbollah has suffered heavy human and material losses during confrontations with Israel following the "support front" (as it described it) that it opened in support of Hamas and the Palestinian factions in Gaza, which led to the assassination of its senior military and political leaders, including its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah.

The conflict ended with an agreement reached between the Lebanese authorities and Israel under American sponsorship to halt hostilities last November.

Since then, the United States has been pressuring through its envoys to Beirut to establish Lebanese state control over all territories and limit arms to it.