The head of the Lebanese-Palestinian dialogue committee said Wednesday that UN Resolution 1701 demanded the disarmament of all militias in Lebanon, including armed Palestinian factions. "The Lebanese government will deploy its control over all its territories and there won't be any weapons but the weapons of the Lebanese Army," Ambassador Khalil Makkawi told the Voice of Lebanon radio.Makkawi said the national priority was to "remove all illegal weapons from South Lebanon, and then from other areas." He told The Daily Star the army would remove all illegal weapons in three camps where they are deploying next to the Litani River, "and they are Rashidieh, Al-Bass and Bourj Shemali. Just like they would confiscate Hizbullah's weapons if they found them there, the same applies to the Palestinians." He added: "The army does not need any permission to enter those camps."
The army would be tasked with disarming armed Palestinian groups, both inside and out of these refugee camps long known as "security islands," in line with the UN Security Council resolution passed on August 14 to end 34 days of fighting between Hizbullah and Israel.