Hariri: Nothing Will Be Changed in Indictment Even If Nasrallah Holds 300 News Conferences
Former premier Saad Hariri stressed Tuesday that “nothing will be changed in the indictment” issued last month by the Special Tribunal for Lebanon along with arrest warrants for four Hizbullah members in the assassination of ex-PM Rafik Hariri, “even if (Hizbullah chief) Sayyed (Hassan) Nasrallah holds 300 press conferences.”
“I will return to Beirut as soon as possible,” Hariri, who is currently in Paris, announced in an interview on MTV, when asked whether his next interview will be broadcast from the Lebanese capital.
“At a certain point, I wanted to go away and watch things from afar and it was my own choice,” Hariri noted.
Asked about the timing of his televised appearance, Hariri said: “I have not decided to speak in order to break the silence, but rather to end the distortion of facts concerning several issues, topped by the indictment and the STL.”
“We are not the ones inciting the international community, the other camp’s press conferences are inciting the international community against Lebanon,” the ex-PM charged.
“The STL mentioned individuals, but Sayyed Nasrallah threw his support behind those individuals. We only want justice through this international tribunal,” Hariri added.
He warned that Lebanon’s non-cooperation with the tribunal “puts Lebanon in danger,” stressing that “no one can terminate the STL.”
“There won’t be stability without justice and the accused are not bigger than their country. Lebanon witnessed assassinations all through 30 years and this is the first time in Lebanon that a tribunal is established to try the murderers of political figures,” Hariri, the son of the slain premier, added.
He reassured that the indictments and the STL were not “against a certain sect,” noting that “the murderers are individuals and do not represent the Sunnis or the Shiites.”
Asked about the fact that he is not in power anymore, Hariri said: “I don’t want to be in power and today I’m satisfied that I’m not in power.”
“I was clear regarding reconciliation and forgiveness, but some people think that they are bigger than Lebanon,” Hariri said of the unsuccessful Saudi-Syrian initiative to break the deadlock in Lebanon, which preceded the toppling of his government on January 12 by Hizbullah and its allies.
“When I got engaged in negotiations, I knew that I would lose politically and popularly , but others do not want to make concessions, they only want to get rid of Saad Hariri. But anyway, why would those who got rid of Rafik Hariri want the presence of Saad Hariri,” Hariri went on to say.
The opposition leader and the former premier stressed that “the main problem in the country is the issue of weapons, which has become our problem with Hizbullah and the problem of Hizbullah itself.”
“Does it want to maintain its hegemony over the Lebanese?” Hariri said of Hizbullah.
“We, in March 14, will not remain silent and Saad Hariri will not remain silent. They are mistaken if they think that we will abandon our allies and we will keep on opposing weapons. The rift over the issue of arms is a major rift,” the ex-PM stressed.
Asked about accusations that the March 14 camp was seeking to harm the country’s stability, Hariri said: “March 14 does not possess weapons and therefore it can’t threaten stability. Do they want us to apologize for the death of our martyrs?”
Asked about whether he was willing to meet with Nasrallah, Hariri said: “I’m not against dialogue, but this time witnesses should be present in the meeting.”
The former premier noted that there is no political dispute between him and incumbent Prime Minister Najib Miqati, but criticized the new government as being “Hizbullah’s government.”
“The decision to topple Saad Hariri was taken by Sayyed Nasrallah and (Syrian) President (Bashar) Assad,” Hariri noted.
He accused the rival camp of being in the service of Hizbullah’s “mini-state.”
“The other camp does not want to be in the service of the State, but rather in the service of the mini-state,” Hariri charged.
Asked about his current relation with Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid JumbIat, Hariri said: “I thank Walid Jumblat for the entire previous period as he was the one who stood up for the blood of Rafik Hariri on March 14 (2005) and I respect him and respect his supporters, regardless of our political differences.”
“When I said that I was betrayed, I was honestly referring to (Finance Minister Mohammed) Safadi and PM Miqati, and actually Lebanon was the one betrayed,” Hariri added.
“We will remain in the opposition camp until the government is toppled or until we win the elections,” he noted.
Asked about the means his camp would use to oust Miqati’s government, Hariri said: “We’re seeking to topple the government with the democratic means and street action might be one of the options, but we won’t shut down an airport, burn tires or jeopardize the economy.”
He also said he did not believe the current government would last till the 2013 parliamentary elections, describing the March 14 camp as a “strong opposition movement.”
Asked by his interviewer to address a message to the embattled Syrian president, Hariri said: “No one is bigger than their country and the Syrian people are the backbone of the state in Syria.”
Addressing President Michel Suleiman, Hariri said: “We were hoping that he would remain true to his inaugural speech and I believe that what’s going on today is not part of that speech.”
“We want you a partner in this country, not a partner in harboring the accused individuals,” Hariri said, addressing Speaker Nabih Berri.
He also noted that he respects the “popular representation” of Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun. “I would’ve liked him to be among the ranks of March 14, but unfortunately he has chosen to be a Hizbullah ‘second-class officer’,” Hariri said of Aoun.
Addressing the supporters of the March 14 forces, Hariri said: “The rift in the country is political and not sectarian. Don’t be frustrated and rest assured that Lebanon’s future will be like you want it to be because we won’t abandon Lebanon and we will continue our path towards making Lebanon the democratic jewel of the Arab world.”
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