BAKU, Azerbaijan, February 24. Egypt on Tuesday urged the international community to better support Lebanon's armed forces to ensure that all weapons in the country come under the exclusive authority of the state TurkicWorld reports via aawsat.
Speaking at a preparatory meeting in Cairo ahead of next month's Paris conference in support of the Lebanese army, Egypt's Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty praised "the success of the Lebanese army in completing the first phase of the plan".
"This achievement reflects the efficiency of the military institution and requires intensifying international support to complete the remaining phases of the plan," Abdelatty said.
Last year, Lebanon's government committed to disarming Hezbollah, which was severely weakened in its recent war with Israel, and tasked the army with drafting a plan to implement the decision.
In January, and in line with the 2024 truce, the army announced it had completed the first phase of the disarmament plan, covering the area between the Litani River and the Israeli border about 30 kilometers (20 miles) further south.
Abdelatty said that Tuesday's meeting aimed "to enable the Lebanese state to ensure that all weapons are held exclusively by the state".
The meeting brought together Lebanon's top security chiefs, including Army Commander General Rodolphe Haykal and Internal Security Forces Director-General Major General Raed Abdallah.
They were joined by representatives of the Quintet Committee on Lebanon, among them Qatar's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Mohammed bin Abdulaziz al-Khulaifi, the French President's personal envoy Jean-Yves Le Drian and Saudi Arabia's envoy to Beirut Prince Yazid bin Farhan, along with senior officials from the United States.
The second phase of the plan focuses on the area between the Litani and Awali rivers, around 40 kilometers south of Beirut.
Hezbollah has so far refused to hand over its weapons north of the Litani.
The government said last week that the army would need at least four months to implement the plan's second phase to disarm Hezbollah in the country's south,
