Lebanon's cabinet approved a US-backed proposal for dismantling Hezbollah's weapons arsenal during a contentious four-hour session that saw four Shiite ministers, including three directly affiliated with Hezbollah or its ally the Amal movement, stage a dramatic walkout in protest of the government's unprecedented challenge to the Iran-backed organization, France 24 reported.
The endorsed introduction outlines 11 objectives, including ensuring the sustainability of the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire and achieving the gradual end of the armed presence of all non-governmental entities, including Hezbollah, in all Lebanese territory.
The Lebanese government announced that disarmament should occur by the end of 2025, prompting Hezbollah's parliamentary bloc to demand officials "correct the situation" and accusing the cabinet of committing a "grave sin" against Lebanese sovereignty.
US envoy Tom Barrack praised Lebanon's actions in a post on X, describing the week's developments as a "historic, bold, and correct decision this week to begin fully implementing the November 2024 Cessation of Hostilities agreement." The November ceasefire agreement stipulated that weapons in Lebanon be restricted to six military and security agencies, challenging Hezbollah's decades-long maintenance of an independent arsenal.
Congratulations to Lebanese President Aoun @lbpresidency, Prime Minister @nawafsalam, and the Council of Ministers for making the historic, bold, and correct decision this week to begin fully implementing the November 2024 Cessation of Hostilities agreement, UN Security Council…
— Ambassador Tom Barrack (@USAMBTurkiye) August 7, 2025
The proposal mandates deploying Lebanese Armed Forces in border regions while requiring Israeli troops to withdraw from five southern locations they have continued occupying since the 2024 war with Hezbollah. Environment Minister Tamara Elzein, who maintains close ties to Amal, told Al Manar that the government "first hoped to consolidate the ceasefire and the Israeli withdrawal, before we could complete the remaining points" in Barrack's proposal regarding weapon confiscation.
Promises made promises kept.
As @POTUS has stated, "My administration stands ready to help Lebanon create a future of economic development and peace with its neighbors… In Lebanon, there's a new chance for a future free from the grip of Hezbollah terrorists… A new president…
— Ambassador Tom Barrack (@USAMBTurkiye) August 7, 2025
The Lebanese government awaits reviewing an executive plan for Hezbollah's disarmament, with the army tasked to present the weapon restriction plan by the end of August. Officials indicated the government will review the complete provisions of the US proposal only after examining the military's implementation strategy.
Under Lebanon's sect-based power-sharing system, the absence of Shiite ministers from this week's cabinet meetings could undermine the decisions' consensual legitimacy, though Hezbollah has emerged from the Israel conflict significantly weakened and with reduced political influence. The organization previously wielded sufficient political power to impose its will or disrupt government operations before last year's warfare.
Hezbollah declared on Wednesday that it would treat the government's disarmament decision "as if it did not exist," establishing a direct confrontation between state authority and the heavily armed group. The organization's parliamentary bloc called on the government Thursday to "correct the situation it has put itself and Lebanon in by slipping into accepting American demands that inevitably serve the interests of the Zionist enemy."
Hundreds of Hezbollah supporters demonstrated Thursday evening in Beirut's southern suburbs protesting the government's decision, while Lebanese media documented similar rallies in other regions where the organization maintains influence, France 24 reported, citing AFP photographers. Lebanese troops deployed throughout these areas to maintain public order as tensions escalated following the cabinet's actions.
Israel has signaled it would not hesitate to launch "destructive military operations" if Beirut fails to disarm Hezbollah, raising concerns about renewed warfare if the disarmament process encounters armed resistance.
UN peacekeepers spokesperson Andrea Tenenti announced Thursday that troops "discovered a vast network of fortified tunnels" in southern Lebanon containing extensive weapon stockpiles. UN spokesman Farhan Haq informed reporters that peacekeepers and Lebanese forces found "three bunkers, artillery, rocket launchers, hundreds of explosive shells and rockets, anti-tank mines and about 250 ready-to-use improvised explosive devices."
BREAKING: The Lebanese government just approved a decision to disarm Hezbollah.
Meanwhile, Western students keep waving its flag in protest.
Maybe it's time Americans thousands of miles away start listening to the Lebanese people themselves. pic.twitter.com/jlYLH3huno
— Hen Mazzig (@HenMazzig) August 7, 2025
Prime Minister Salam reported in June that the Lebanese army had dismantled more than 500 Hezbollah military positions and weapons depots throughout the south, demonstrating ongoing efforts to assert state control over the organization's infrastructure. France 24 noted that Thursday's cabinet decision represents the most significant government challenge to Hezbollah's military capabilities since the group's formation in the 1980s.
