Geagea Says Hizbullah Involved Lebanon in Syria Conflict
Lebanese Force leader Samir Geagea rejected any armed presence for Syrians on Lebanese territories, considering that the situation in the northeastern town of Arsal will deteriorate as long as the conflict in neighboring country Syria is ongoing and Hizbullah is engaged in the war.
Geagea wondered in an interview with Free Lebanon radio why the army doesn't prevent Hizbullah fighters from entering Syria.
“Hizbullah said that it's involved in the war in Syria to prevent ISIL (the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant) from expanding to Lebanon but the results were different.”
Asked about reports saying that the Arsal gunmen, who took hostage of around 35 security personnel, aim at swapping them with Islamist prisoners in Roumieh prison, Geagea rejected the matter.
“This would undermine the authority of the state,” the Christian leader told his interviewer.
He accused Hizbullah of “widely opening the door” before the extremist organization to infiltrate Lebanon.
“The only solution is to build a strong state,” Geagea said.
The seizure of Arsal over the weekend marked the first time that Islamic extremists from Syria carried out a large-scale incursion into Lebanon and raised fears of a further spillover of the conflict across the porous border.
The militants took with them around 35 captives from the army and Internal Security Forces who were in the town's outskirts when the attack was launched last Saturday.
Concerning proposals to extend the mission of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon to include the country's eastern border, Geagea described the rejection voiced by some parties as a “scandal.”
“The Lebanese army should be able to control the border and prevent gunmen from moving in and out without any discrimination,” the LF leader told the radio station.
The March 14 alliance continuously called on the state to allow the UNIFIL to deploy along the the Lebanese-Syrian border in accordance with resolution 1701.
Geagea refused to engage in dialogue with the Syrian regime regarding the border chaos, saying: “(President) Bashar Assad's regime is the origin of the problem... We will not begin dialogue with a criminal authority that is bombing its people.”
Asked if the Arsal battle would lead to the election of Army Commander General Jean Qahwaji as a president, the presidential hopeful said that he will not back any constitutional amendment to elect a new head of state.
“The Free Patriotic Movement and the Lebanese Forces represent the majority of Christians and it's natural for the leaders of the two parties to run for presidency,” the March 14 official said.
Geagea called on the March 8 rivals, in particular Hizbullah and the FPM, to attend presidential parliamentary sessions and end the standoff.
Lebanon has been plunged into a leadership vacuum after Michel Suleiman's presidential term ended on May 25 with rival political blocs still divided over a new leader.
The parliament convened nine times to try to elect a successor to Suleiman but failed during the last eight sessions due to a lack of quorum.
Another session is expected to be held on Tuesday.
H.K.
M.T.
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