Less than a month after Lebanon began a process to disarm Palestinian refugee camps, new weapons deliveries were handed over Saturday from Ain al-Hilweh and al-Beddawi, two of the country’s largest camps.
The Lebanese army said on X that it had received five truckloads of weapons and ammunition from Ain al-Hilweh, near Sidon, and three trucks from al-Beddawi, near Tripoli. “The delivery included various types of weapons and ammunition, which will be inspected by the relevant army units,” the statement said.
Palestinian factions surrendering their weapons at the al-Beddawi refugee camp, Lebanon
Hezbollah-affiliated Lebanese network Al Mayadeen reported that the shipment from Ain al-Hilweh included rockets. Three additional trucks from al-Beddawi were also said to be loaded with arms. But the Qatari daily The New Arab reported that at least one of the trucks was nearly empty, casting doubt on the extent of the handover.
Hezbollah-linked newspaper Al-Akhbar quoted Palestinian security officials as saying that the latest delivery represented the “completion” of new shipments of weapons belonging to the Palestine Liberation Organization.
The disarmament initiative began last month, when armed members of Fatah, the dominant Palestinian faction, surrendered some of their weapons to the Lebanese army at Burj al-Barajneh camp in Beirut. Ramiz Damashqieh, head of Lebanon’s Palestinian Dialogue Committee, said at the time that this was the first stage of a broader process expected to unfold at other camps in the coming weeks.
However, several Palestinian factions later issued statements rejecting the move, vowing not to relinquish their weapons. Last week, heavy gunfire broke out in Burj al-Barajneh during violent clashes tied to internal disputes, fueling skepticism about whether Palestinian groups intend to fully disarm.
Between 280,000 and 520,000 Palestinians are believed to live in Lebanon, though only about 230,000 are registered with the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA. They are spread across 12 camps, including Ain al-Hilweh, Mar Elias, Rashidieh and Nahr al-Bared. Conditions in the camps are widely reported to be poor, with inadequate health and education services and widespread poverty.
The camps also house significant stockpiles of weapons controlled by various Palestinian groups, often outside the authority of the Lebanese state. Factions active in the camps include Fatah, Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), as well as splinter groups such as the PFLP–General Command, the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine and smaller organizations, some reportedly linked to al-Qaida. These groups maintain shifting alliances and rivalries, contributing to instability and frequent clashes.