Armed Palestinian groups in Lebanese refugee camps will start handing over their weapons to the authorities on Thursday, a joint committee said, following a deal reached in May.

"Today marks the beginning of the first phase of the process of handing over weapons from inside the Palestinian camps," Lebanese-Palestinian Dialogue Committee chairman Ramez Dimashkieh said in a statement.

Kataeb leader Sami Gemayel met Thursday with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, as Lebanon plans to disarm Hezbollah under U.S. pressure.

A harsh critic of Hezbollah, Gemayel said he rejects the marginalization of the Shiite community. "We want the Shia community to be a partner in building the new Lebanon, and this is a red line for us."

President Joseph Aoun stressed Thursday that “the decision taken by Cabinet on arms monopoly has been informed to all brotherly and friendly countries and the U.N.”

“Lebanon is committed to implementing it in a manner that preserves the interest of all Lebanese,” Aoun added, in a Baabda meeting with Arab League Assistant Secretary-General Hossam Zaki.

Israeli civilian Salah Abu Hussein, who had been jailed in Lebanon for the past year, was returned to Israel today, Thursday, Israel's government said.

Arab League Assistant Secretary-General Hossam Zaki met Thursday in Lebanon with President Joseph Aoun and Speaker Nabih Berri.

Speaking after his talks with Aoun, Zaki said his visit is aimed at “stressing the Arab League’s support for the principle of extending the authority of the state and monopolizing weapons in its hand.”

The Israeli army targeted Thursday several areas in south Lebanon, killing at least one person.

A drone on a motorbike in Deir Seryan killed one person, the National News Agency said. Another strike later hit the outskirts of Ainata - Bint Jbeil.

British Ambassador to Lebanon Hamish Cowell has inaugurated a newly upgraded Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) training facility in Zahrani in South Lebanon, the embassy said in a statement Thursday.

"The LAF facility was developed and upgraded through the support of the UK Government’s Integrated Security Fund. It will serve as a vital training facility for LAF troops strengthening their readiness for deployment across South Lebanon. The UK is also providing 1,000 Personal Protection Equipment sets to protect LAF soldiers as they carry out critical duties," the statement said.

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri met Wednesday in Ain el-Tineh with U.S. Senator Markwayne Mullin and a congressional delegation from the Republican and Democratic parties.

“Despite the international efforts exerted, and the U.S. mediation in particular, to compel Israel to comply with international legitimacy and to implement the ceasefire agreement agreed on in November 2024 and Resolution 1701, we have been surprised by counter-efforts against Resolutions 425 and 1701 and against the ceasefire agreement from the same sponsor (Washington), targeting the presence of the UNIFIL forces and their mission,” Berri said during the meeting.

Foreign Minister Youssef Rajji on Wednesday described the government’s decision on arms monopolization as “historic,” saying that Lebanon has asked U.S. envoy Tom Barrack for “an Israeli step in return.”

“We’ve gone through decades of occupation and the hegemony of movements that have nothing to do with Lebanon,” Rajji added in remarks to Al-Arabiya TV, while stressing that “there will be no turning back on the decision to monopolize arms.”

Free Patriotic Movement chief Jebran Bassil warned against using force to disarm Hezbollah, saying that it is not acceptable to threaten Hezbollah while Israel has not stopped its aggressions and is still occupying five hills in south Lebanon.

Bassil said in an interview Tuesday with Saudi state-owned news channel al-Arabiya that using force against Hezbollah would lead to domestic conflicts after the government tasked the Lebanese army to submit a plan by the end of August to disarm the group.