Lebanese army soldiers oversee the handover of weapons from Beddawi Camp in Lebanon's northern city of Tripoli on Sept. 13, 2025. Palestinian factions in refugee camps in northern and southern Lebanon handed over weapons to the Lebanese army on Saturday, local media reported. According to Lebanon's National News Agency, the handover began at Beddawi Camp in northern Lebanon, from inside the Fatah Movement headquarters. (Photo by Khaled Habashiti/Xinhua)

BEIRUT, Sept. 13 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian factions in refugee camps in northern and southern Lebanon handed over weapons to the Lebanese army on Saturday, local media reported.

According to Lebanon's National News Agency, the handover began at Beddawi Camp in northern Lebanon, from inside the Fatah Movement headquarters.

The weapons were transported under army escort to barracks in the northern city of Tripoli, supervised by the Lebanese-Palestinian Dialogue Committee, the Palestinian Embassy, and the Palestinian National Security Forces. The army received three truckloads of weapons from the camp, the report said.

Mustafa Abou Harb, secretary of the Fatah movement and the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) factions in northern Lebanon, said they handed over "what was required," adding that the remaining PLO weapons in Beddawi were "individual weapons."

Meanwhile, Elnashra news website reported that the Lebanese army received trucks of weapons from Ain el Helweh camp in the southern city of Sidon and is inspecting them at a nearby barracks.

The handovers follow the resolutions of the Lebanese-Palestinian summit on May 21 between Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, which affirmed Lebanon's sovereignty over all its territory, the extension of state authority, and the principle of state control over arms.

As of this February, the UNRWA Lebanon Field Office reported that 222,000 Palestinians reside in Lebanon, many living in densely populated refugee camps that have historically operated with a degree of autonomy and outside full state control. Armed groups within these camps have long maintained weapons for security and political purposes, complicating Lebanon's efforts to assert state authority.

On Aug. 5, the Lebanese cabinet approved a plan, despite opposition from Hezbollah and Amal Movement ministers, tasking the army with preparing a strategy to bring all weapons, including Hezbollah's, under state control before the end of the year. ■

Lebanese army soldiers oversee the handover of weapons from Beddawi Camp in Lebanon's northern city of Tripoli on Sept. 13, 2025.

Palestinian factions in refugee camps in northern and southern Lebanon handed over weapons to the Lebanese army on Saturday, local media reported.

According to Lebanon's National News Agency, the handover began at Beddawi Camp in northern Lebanon, from inside the Fatah Movement headquarters. (Photo by Khaled Habashiti/Xinhua)

The photo shows Lebanese army trucks transporting heavy weapons handed over from the Ain el Helweh camp in Sidon, Lebanon, on Sept. 13, 2025. Palestinian factions in refugee camps in northern and southern Lebanon handed over weapons to the Lebanese army on Saturday, local media reported. (Photo by Ali Hashisho/Xinhua)

The photo shows a Lebanese army tank overseeing the handover of weapons from the Ain el Helweh camp in Sidon, Lebanon, on Sept. 13, 2025. Palestinian factions in refugee camps in northern and southern Lebanon handed over weapons to the Lebanese army on Saturday, local media reported. (Photo by Ali Hashisho/Xinhua)