Beirut: Lebanon's cabinet agreed late on Wednesday to form a commission to tackle arms possession following a clash between two groups this week that killed at least three people.
"From now on, the military and security forces, the army and internal security forces, will assume the responsibility of controlling security, and will track down anyone who may provoke problems in this country, especially like the one that happened yesterday," Lebanese Prime Minister Sa'ad Hariri said in a statement e-mailed late yesterday evening.
Freeze on licences
Clashes erupted in a Beirut neighbourhood late on Tuesday between followers of the Hezbollah resistance movement and the pro-Syrian Sunni Al Ahbash group, killing at least three people. Rocket-propelled grenades and heavy machineguns were used in the skirmish.
Both groups later said the incident was a result of a personal dispute and are cooperating with the Lebanese Army, which is investigating the event.
The clashes were the worst since the sectarian fighting that started in May 2008 killed at least 80 people. Minister of Defence Elias Murr issued an order this week "freezing all arms licences granted on all Lebanese territory until further notice", according to a statement from the Lebanese Army.
"The proliferation of arms in each and every street and neighbourhood is no longer acceptable," said Hariri, who will head the new commission.
Hezbollah, which is represented in Lebanon's parliament and is part of the national unity government, retained its weapons after the country's 15-year civil war ended in 1990 as a means of defense against Israel, which occupied southern Lebanon until 2000.
