Kataeb Bloc, Yaacoubian Resign after Beirut Blast
Kataeb party chief MP Sami Gemayel announced on Saturday that his three-member parliamentary bloc decided to resign from parliament in protest at the Beirut blast widely blamed on government negligence and corruption.
Gemayel made the announcement during an emotional speech during a funeral service for Kataeb's Secretary-General Nazar Najarian who died in Tuesday’s blast.
The resignation brings to five the number of MPs to quit since the disaster.
"Your comrades took the decision to resign from parliament," Gemayel said, addressing Najarian, one of the 154 confirmed victims of the explosion at Beirut port.
Gemayel criticised the reactions of several top politicians who argued the international aid effort following the disaster would be an opportunity to break the diplomatic isolation of Lebanon.
"A new Lebanon must be born on the ruins of the old one, which you represent," he said, addressing the authorities at large and their clan leaders.
The Christian party's three resignations from the 128-seat parliament come after those of Marwan Hamade from the party of Druze leader Walid Jumblat and independent MP Paula Yacoubian.
Yacoubian told the CNN news channel that she was urging the entire parliament to stand down.
"As the MP of Beirut, I took the decision of resigning because I feel I'm a false witness in this parliament," she said.
"There's nothing we can do, the decision-making is outside the parliament," she said. "Everyone should resign."
Lebanon's ambassador to Jordan also resigned in the aftermath of the blast, caused when fire spread to a depot where a huge amount of ammonium nitrate had been stored for years, unsecured.
Early evidence shows top officials knew of its presence at the port and that safety procedures were knowingly and repeatedly violated.
The government has promised a swift and thorough enquiry but public trust is low that an investigative committee chaired by top officials will uncover the real culprits.
08 August 2020, 14:32
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It is great that some MPs are resigning from congress. I wish they will all resign for failing to do the people's job. It is up to the people of Lebanon to elect new representatives who care about them instead of playing power grab and lining their pockets with money.
08 August 2020, 15:17
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Tric.portugal: You are as stupid as usual, and that is a constructive remark !
08 August 2020, 15:30
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Dudes.. Beirut is disaster zone.. Meca sent help.. UAE sent help.. Jordan sent help.. Qatar sent help.. Iraq sent help.. China sent help.. Canada sent help.. Australia sent help.. France sent help.. Italy sent help.. Holland sent help.. Poland sent help.. Czech Republic sent help.. the Scandinavian countries sent help.. Spain sent help.. Russia sent help.. UK sent help.. USA sent help.. UN sent help.. Regular folks from all over the world sent care packages.. in support of the bereaved people of Lebanon... Iran sent a bemused Hassan Nasrallah.. Portugal.. she sent her village idiot.. Bashar also sent Portugal's village idiot.. Brazil sent Portugal's village idiot.. but called it libanaisresilient.. thinking no one will notice.. it was Portugal's village idiot...
08 August 2020, 17:52
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@lubnani
I doubt @trick is Shiite, though he could be. He comes across more like FPM perspective unfortunately.
08 August 2020, 18:04
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I am sure she is leaving with a lot more than what she had when she came in. She is another POS!!!
08 August 2020, 19:26
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THIS IS THE BEGINNING OF THE END TO THE MILITARY WING OF HEZBOLLAH who controls this and every government since the Civil War ended. Hezbollah must be disarmed BY FORCE, by an multi-international army, because this is the only way they can be. The entire government MUST RESIGN! France needs to take over and rebuild this country...THE PEOPLE MUST TAKE THEIR COUNTRY BACK. Go to the homes of all the politicians who haven't resigned and take their cars and homes since they were "stolen" from the Republic of Lebanon. Leave them homeless and let them feel what its like to have something taken away from them and what poverty really feels like. REVOLUTION ● RESIGN ● REFORM
08 August 2020, 23:17
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At least you showed dignity by resigning and allowing the people to have the country back. I hope its not just another example of decent people resigning to set an example while the real corrupt ones hang on. Just like after the Civil War, the decent military factions laid down their arms while the devil resisted calling itself the Party of God. They have ruined Lebanon by controlling its assets in and out and keeping Lebanon at war with its neighbors. No God in any religion in the world promotes hate, corruption and ill-will to a fellow human being regardless of political affiliation, religion or nationality. Better ask your God for salvation because your days are numbered...
09 August 2020, 01:35
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Trico. You are so prolific. I mean you have nothing to do to improve your pathetic life beside posting your idiotic theories? How about you run an IQ test they are free....
09 August 2020, 04:58
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Hummm, I have no idea what you are saying 99.9% of the time, maybe you are better at Farsi?
09 August 2020, 10:03
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he/she is using Google translate Farsi-English but has made some efforts; Mecca has 2 'c' but refugees is still written like a moron would write it lol
09 August 2020, 10:41
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Bigjohn: please enlighten me on the fascism playbook. You seem to be an expert. For instance do you qualify mitwelestan in south of Beirut as liberal so we can have a model to follow.
?
09 August 2020, 15:22
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What a dummy bigjohn. He thinks that Comrades is strictly a communist term LOL. The Syrian moukhabarat idiot claims to be Lebanese from Koura yet he doesn't know that the members of Kataeb and LF call each others "rafi2", plural "rifa2" ie comrade or comrades. Anyone who really lives in Koura and is over 16 years old, even a member of the SSNP, LCP, Maraga or whatever other parties, will know this fact by the simple daily social interactions with their Kataeb and LF neighbors or by just watching the News on Lebanese TV. Only one growing up on Tishrine, al-Watan and Syrian TV could make bigjohn stupid mistake. Go one bigjohn "from Koura" tell us who's a zionist, idiot LOL.
09 August 2020, 15:33
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BTW the only fascists are the ones with a flag copied, colors design and all, from the Nazi flag, and who during the troubles of 1958 fought along side the Kataeb and the NL.
