Prime Minister Nawwaf Salam stressed during the cabinet session in at Baabda Presidential Palace that storing or transporting weapons under any pretext requires security follow-up and judicial prosecution, reporting progress in talks with Qatar regarding the electricity project.
What follows is the full text of Salam’s remarks:
“Regardless of the item on the agenda concerning the draft decree to refer the Dahr al-Baydar truck incident to the Judicial Council, I believe it is necessary to reaffirm the following non-negotiable constants:
First: The monopoly of arms in the hands of the state is fundamentally the basis of the state’s establishment, its constitution, and its laws—specifically the Penal Code and the National Defense Law—in addition to the Taif Agreement, Resolution 1701, and the declaration of the cessation of hostilities of November 2024.
Second: The entities authorized to carry weapons in Lebanon are exclusively: the Lebanese Armed Forces, the Internal Security Forces, the General Security Directorate, the General Directorate of State Security, the Lebanese Customs, and the municipal police. This was stated in the preamble of the aforementioned cessation-of-hostilities declaration, which was approved by the previous government and reaffirmed by our government in its ministerial statement—upon which it won the confidence of Parliament—and in its subsequent decisions. The word ‘exclusively’ is part of the original text, not a subsequent addition by any party. What is required of Hezbollah is to commit to what it has previously announced its agreement to, nothing more and nothing less.
Third: There is no partner to the state in the decision of war and peace. This is at the core of the country’s constitution, and we have reaffirmed it in our ministerial statement and in several government decisions. There is no harm in reiterating it after all the costs the Lebanese people have incurred as a result of unilaterally plunging the country into wars outside of constitutional institutions.
Fourth: In implementation of these principles—particularly the state’s monopoly on weapons—we had previously requested the army to prepare a plan for implementation, which we welcomed in the Cabinet last September, and we reaffirmed the necessity of proceeding with its application across all Lebanese regions in March of this year. No one, whoever they may be, has the status or authority to reconsider this except the Cabinet.
Fifth: Storing or transporting weapons outside of the entities legitimately authorized to do so, under any pretext whatsoever, constitutes not only a violation of these constants, applicable laws, and Cabinet decisions, but also poses a threat to public safety and endangers the security of citizens. It requires security follow-up and judicial prosecution to impose the strictest penalties prescribed by law against the perpetrators. No one can impose a ceiling on us other than the ceiling set by the law, and nothing takes precedence over the safety of the country and the security of citizens.
Sixth: Before ruling on the item placed on the agenda at the request of the Minister of Justice concerning the referral of the explosives seized in the Dahr al-Baydar and Al-Qasr regions to the Judicial Council, it should be clarified that I did not attach the text of the draft decree prepared in this regard to the agenda, so that discussion would not begin outside the Cabinet and prior to its convening. Therefore, when this item is raised, I will ask the Secretary-General to read the draft to you.”
The Prime Minister added: “I inform you that the Minister of Energy and I have made significant progress in our discussions with the Qatari side regarding the framework offer presented to us to address the electricity situation. The Qatari offer is a comprehensive proposal for the rehabilitation, development, and modernization of the electricity production infrastructure, covering various sources of electricity generation. It is based on the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) model. Furthermore, Qatari entities will handle financing, implementation, and operation without the Lebanese Treasury bearing any upfront investment costs, which will provide electricity under more stable conditions and at a lower cost to citizens.”
He continued: “Minister Sfeir and his technical ministry team are following up on all technical aspects, and once all elements of this project are complete, we will present it to the Cabinet for discussion and to take the appropriate decision. Since addressing the electricity crisis is not only a matter of production but also requires tackling distribution and collection, I will call, in agreement with Minister Sfeir, for a Cabinet session dedicated exclusively to the electricity issue within the next two weeks.”
Source: Al-Manar English Website