Geagea: Syrian Regime Cannot Implement Arab League Initiative
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea noted on Thursday that the Syrian regime cannot go ahead with the Arab League proposal even though it had announced its acceptance of the initiative “without reservations.”
He added: “The regime has only made a political maneuver and it cannot withdraw its troops from the streets and it will not allow the media and rights groups to enter Syria.”
Addressing parliament’s approval of a law allowing Lebanese who fled to Israel to return to their country, he noted: “If only parliament had adopted the Phalange Party bloc’s proposal on this matter, which presents a radical solution to this matter, while the new suggestion does not offer a resolution to it.”
“What was presented at parliament on Wednesday does not differ from what is taking place on the ground as investigations are made with women and children refugees, while the men are sent to trial,” he explained.
“Shouldn’t the case of Lebanese in Israel be resolved after ten years of the liberation of southern Lebanon?” wondered the LF leader.
“How come families are allowed to demonstrate and block roads demanding amnesty for drug dealers while Lebanese in Israel are not allowed to return to their homeland?” asked Geagea.
Furthermore, he said that the Lebanese Forces MPs had presented in 2008 a draft law on granting compensations to the families of Lebanese prisoners in Syrian jails, but the Change and Reform bloc MPs dismissed the matter and instead presented a draft law on the issue to Speaker Nabih Berri who is their ally.
“It has turned out that the law they proposed does not meet the necessary conditions … and it will be merged with the LF MPs’ proposal …. If only the law on the Lebanese refugees would have been dealt with in the same way,” he added.
“The current Lebanese government does not have the necessary elements to sustain itself and it never really had them to begin with,” he continued.
“Each day this government is in power harms Lebanon,” Geagea stressed.
“The Lebanese citizen is being disregarded and therefore it is best that the government resign,” he stated.
Parliament had approved on Wednesday a law allowing Lebanese refugees in Israel the right to return to Lebanon.
The law was initially proposed by Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun and amended by Speaker Nabih Berri.
Parliament also rejected granting families of Lebanese prisoners in Syrian jails compensations, citing a lack of funds.
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