Lebanon's cabinet on Tuesday tasked the army with drawing up a plan to establish a state monopoly on arms by the end of the year, a challenge to Hezbollah, which has rejected calls to disarm since last year's devastating war with Israel.

Such a move would effectively disarm Hezbollah, an Iran- backed Shiite political party and militant group in Lebanon. It comes as part of implementing a November 2024 ceasefire that sought to end more than a year of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah,

In a groundbreaking move, the Lebanese government has tasked the army with drafting a plan to disarm Hezbollah by the end of this year. According to AFP, the six-hour cabinet session held on Tuesday, August 5, was chaired by President Joseph Aoun. The initiative is aimed at fulfilling the terms of a November ceasefire agreement with Israel.