March 14: STL Cornerstone for Lebanon’s Civil Peace

The March 14 General Secretariat noted on Wednesday that Prime Minister Najib Miqati sought hard during his trip to New York to garner international support for his government through issuing verbal commitments to international resolutions.

It said in a statement after its weekly meeting: “The Special Tribunal for Lebanon is the cornerstone for Lebanon’s civil peace and the rise of a state capable of implementing the law equally among all citizens.”

“The law should not only be applied to unarmed Lebanese, but those who claim to be more powerful than others due to their possession of arms,” it added.

“Miqati’s government includes ministers from Hizbullah, a party which is accused of committing assassinations in Lebanon,” it continued.

It would have been better for the premier to pledge that Lebanon will hand the suspects in the assassination of former PM Rafik Hariri over to international law, stressed the statement.

Miqati had vowed at the United Nations Security Council on Tuesday that Lebanon will commit to its international obligations, including the decisions of the STL.

The STL had issued arrest warrants against four Hizbullah members, accusing them of being involved in Hariri’s 2005 assassination.

The March 14 General Secretariat renewed its commitment to the Taef accord, “which stipulates that the state alone is responsible for Lebanon’s political, administrative, economic, military, and security decisions, warning against the ongoing violation of these rules.”

“This violation reflects the need for maintaining mutual coexistence in Lebanon,” it said.

Furthermore, the statement slammed recent Hizbullah remarks that the party’s arms are necessary for mutual coexistence.

The General Secretariat stressed that these weapons are illegitimate and illegal “and they are the main cause for instability in the country and a reason why laws in Lebanon are not being implemented.”