Connelly Meets Charbel, Expresses U.S. Concern over Tripoli Unrest

U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Maura Connelly praised on Thursday the Lebanese army and the Internal Security Forces in working with political leaders to maintain peace and stability at this difficult time.

She expressed after holding talks with caretaker Interior Minister Marwan Charbel the U.S. government’s concern over the current outbreak of violence in Tripoli, conveying her regrets over the deaths in Tripoli.

The ambassador and minister also discussed the latest political developments in Lebanon, with Connelly noting the “overwhelming public support among the Lebanese people that parliamentary elections be held in a timely manner.”

An ongoing dispute between political powers over the adoption of a new electoral law is threatening to postpone the elections that are scheduled for June 16.

Connelly welcomed efforts by the Interior Ministry to prepare for elections, in keeping with Lebanon's legal and constitutional requirements and in order to respect Lebanon’s democratic values.

Lebanon’s democratic process is a linchpin to Lebanon’s stability, she remarked

She renewed the United States’ commitment to a stable, sovereign and independent Lebanon.

At least six people were killed in the northern city of Tripoli overnight, as rival neighborhoods clashed using for the first time different caliber mortars in addition to flares.

The latest round of clashes brought the death toll to at least 12 and the number of wounded to at least 140.

The battles that engulfed the city for a fifth day, kept schools and most companies and markets closed.

The clashes are taking place mainly between the neighborhoods of Bab al-Tabbaneh, which supports the Syrian uprising, and Jabal Mohsen, which supports the Syrian regime.