Phalange Party Urges Army to Forbid Hizbullah, Others from Sending Fighters to Syria

The Phalange Party on Monday called on the Lebanese army and all political forces to prevent the smuggling of fighters into Syria by Hizbullah or any other group, warning of the growing spillover of the Syrian war into Lebanon's border towns.

In a statement issued after the weekly meeting of its political bureau, the party reiterated its “condemnation of the growing involvement by Hizbullah and other Lebanese groups in the ongoing civil strife in Syria,” holding them responsible for “dragging Lebanon into a war that is rejected by its people.”

The Phalange Party cited "the dangerous developments on Lebanon's border in the Bekaa and the North, especially after the Syrian will spilled over into these two regions and led to the martyrdom of soldiers and civilians and the destruction of civilian constructions."

Clashes took place overnight Saturday between a group of the rebel Free Syrian Army a number of Hizbullah members coming from Baalbek in a border area between the outskirts of Baalbek and Damascus province in Syria, a security source told Agence France Presse, as other media reports said the gunfight took place inside Lebanese territory.

"The Lebanese army and all Lebanese political forces must put an end to the sending of arms and fighters to Syria, whether to back a certain party or to protect another," the Phalange Party added in its statement.

It warned that the spillover of the fighting into Lebanon "will have major repercussions on its national unity and the solidarity among its people."

Turning to the issue of the parliamentary elections, the party called for "drafting a new, modern electoral law that guarantees proper representation for all the components of the Lebanese society in order to hold the parliamentary elections as soon as possible."

The party urged Speaker Nabih Berri to "revive the parliamentary subcommittee and resume its meetings, especially that the disputes over the new electoral law can be resolved if everyone realizes how dangerous it is to suspend constitutional junctures."

The parliament on Friday voted to extend its own term until November 20, 2014, amid the boycott of the Free Patriotic Movement.

The Phalange Party also called for forming a new cabinet as soon as possible because "the country cannot bear total vacuum and rampant impotence, especially on the eve of the summer tourism season on which the Lebanese economy and large segments of citizens rely.”