With the end of the Battle of Tel al-Zaatar, the need for a unified military body became evident. Bachir Gemayel met with Fawzi Mahfouz, leader of Al-Tanzim, to advance the project of unifying the Christian militias. A few days later, he convened the leaders of the militias that had participated in the Tel al-Zaatar battle to lay the foundations for merging them under a single military command. They agreed to establish a new military organization: the Lebanese Forces.

The declared goal of the Lebanese Forces was to liberate Lebanese territory from all foreign troops. The structure included a unified leadership council composed of representatives from the Kataeb, the Tigers, Al-Tanzim, and the Guardians of the Cedars, along with a Chief of Staff. Decisions were made by absolute majority, with the Kataeb and the Tigers jointly retaining veto power. Parties appointed members to the council for one year, after which the council would elect a Commander-in-Chief and a Deputy Commander.

The organizational focus was placed on structuring the armed forces, unifying their uniforms and barracks, inventorying their weapons, and placing them under the authority of the unified leadership. The council was officially established on August 30, 1976, with Colonel Zouhair Al-Rachid appointed as Chief of Staff.