Lebanon said on Thursday it was launching the planned disarmament of Palestinian factions in refugee camps, part of a wider effort to establish a state monopoly on arms. The planned disarmament was starting with the handover of weapons on Thursday from the Burj al-Barajneh camp in Beirut to the Lebanese army,

Armed Palestinian groups in refugee camps in Lebanon 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,

Palestinian factions have started handing over some weapons from a refugee camp near Beirut to the Lebanese army.