Suleiman from Yerevan: Attack on UNIFIL Aims at Driving it out of Lebanon

President Michel Suleiman on Friday slammed the “terrorist attack” on the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, saying its objective is to drive the peacekeepers out of the country.

At a joint press conference with his Armenian counterpart Serzh Sarkisian in Yerevan, Suleiman said: “France, which has made huge sacrifices for Lebanon, will not succumb to these terrorist activities.”

His comment came after five French soldiers and two civilians were wounded by a powerful roadside bomb that targeted the peacekeepers’ patrol on a road leading to Burj al-Shamali south of the city of Tyre.

“The state will assume its responsibility in arresting the culprits to prevent the return of such attacks,” he said.

Earlier in the day, Suleiman laid a wreath at the Genocide Monument in Yerevan.

The president reiterated on Thursday that he would continue his efforts to hold the National Dialogue at Baabda palace.

At a ceremony held by the Lebanese community at the Golden Palace hotel, Suleiman hoped that “developments in the Arab world would lead to reform and democracy … that would preserve human rights and freedoms.”

He stressed that he would continue to exert efforts to invite Lebanese officials to the all-party talks at Baabda, implement the previous decisions reached at the National Dialogue, improve the country’s democratic performance and resort to legal institutions to resolve any crisis away from violence.