The Lebanese army on Thursday took delivery of a large cache of heavy weapons from Palestinian factions in three refugee camps near the southern city of Tyre, in the latest step of a government plan to place all arms under State control.

In a statement, the army said it had received “a new batch of arms south of the Litani River, from the Rashidieh, Burj al-Shamali, and al-Bass camps in the Tyre area.” The handover, it said, was conducted in coordination with Palestinian factions and in line with a political decision by the Lebanese authorities.

Army Command said the haul included mortars, rocket-propelled grenade launchers and Grad rockets. The weapons were transferred to specialized military units for storage and disposal.

Convoy Under Heavy Escort

At around 10 a.m., seven pickup trucks laden with medium and heavy weapons left Rashidieh camp, the largest in Tyre, under army escort. The convoy, led by a dark-glass SUV, exited through the camp’s only eastern gate, where soldiers maintain a permanent checkpoint, and proceeded to the Second Intervention Regiment barracks in Shwakir.

Two more trucks carrying weapons later arrived from Burj al-Shamali and al-Bass camps, also escorted by the army. The operation unfolded under a large and unusual deployment of troops across the Tyre area.

Sources in Fatah told al-Modon news website the arms had been stockpiled in advance under an agreement between Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and the Lebanese presidency. The deal is part of Beirut’s wider effort to consolidate authority over weapons outside the control of the state.

The transfer was overseen by Maj. Gen. Sobhi Abu Arab, commander of the Palestinian National Security Forces in Lebanon, along with senior Fatah and Lebanese army intelligence officers.

Disarmament Limited to Fatah

Thursday’s operation covered only the three refugee camps south of the Litani River, home to an estimated 50,000 refugees. It involved weapons held by Fatah, the dominant Palestinian faction in Lebanon, but excluded Islamist groups such as Hamas and Islamic Jihad, which say their arsenals remain dedicated to fighting Israel.

“This step was taken by decision of the Palestinian leadership, within the framework of an agreement with the Lebanese state,” Abu Ali Hallaq, the Palestinian National Security commander in Tyre’s camps, told al-Modon.

A senior Hamas source said the group had “no involvement” in the transfer, insisting its heavy weapons “are directed solely against the Israeli enemy, and will remain so as long as the occupation persists.” A Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine official noted that his faction had already surrendered heavy arms to the state in 1991.