Backed by U.N. forces, Lebanese troops will take control south of the Litani River, including over Palestinian refugee camps, for the first time since 1969.
Defense Minister Elias Murr said the decision to place Palestinian camps under the Lebanese state's authority is an inherent part of the government's determination to have the Lebanese army and UNIFIL responsible for security in the area south of the Litani River all the way to the international border in line with Security Council resolution 1701.
'The army will enter the camp of Rashidiyeh and conduct patrols inside the camp,' Murr said, noting that the Palestinian camp's officials understood the government's decision.
It will be the first time a Palestinian camp will be under Lebanese authority since 1969. That year the Palestine Liberation Organization became solely responsible for security inside all refugee camps in Lebanon, according to an agreement signed with the Lebanese government.
Resolution 1559 stipulated disarming Lebanese and non-Lebanese militias -- in reference to Palestinian armed factions and Hezbollah -- but Palestinian groups opposed removing arms from the camps which they say are threatened by Israel.
The Lebanese government is also seeking to disarm Palestinian groups outside the camps, notably Syrian-backed factions including the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine--General Command of Ahmed Jibril.
In the meantime, Israeli troops began withdrawing from south Lebanon Tuesday and the first batch of paratroopers crossed back into north Israel in the early morning.
Israeli daily Yediot Ahronot said the paratroopers' unit was deployed deep in south Lebanon Saturday. Resolution 1701 was passed unanimously last Friday to put an end to 33 days of unabatedconfrontations between Israel and Hezbollah in which more than 1,000 Lebanese, mostly civilians, were killed and Lebanon's infrastructurelargely destroyed.