(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) BEIRUT, Sept 5 (KUNA) -- The Lebanese government welcomed on Friday the army's executive plan to restrict weapons to the state's military and security institutions and extend its authority over the entire country.
"The army will begin implementing the plan according to its available and limited capabilities," Information Minister Paul Morcos said after an important cabinet session.
The meeting was chaired by President Joseph Aoun and attended by Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and Army Commander General Joseph Haykal who informed the cabinet about the details of the army plan.
"The army has the right to evaluate its plan according to the operational situation and that might require extra time," the minister said.
Morcos stressed that the main obstacle to the implementation of the army plan is the ongoing Israeli occupation attacks on Lebanon.
"Any progress toward implementing the US paper hinges on Israel's steps," he went on to say.
The cabinet also reiterated that the decision to declare war and make peace would remain exclusively in the hands of the State constitutional institutions.
The government said that it is committed to preparing a national security strategy that reinforces the new approach.
The cabinet condemned the daily Israeli occupation attacks on southern Lebanon, which target civilians and civilian infrastructure, considering them a systematic violation of the US-brokered agreement on the cessation of hostilities and a direct threat to security and stability.
Lebanon reaffirmed its full commitment to Resolution 1701 as the legitimate framework guaranteeing Lebanese sovereignty. (end)
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