Report: Army Waiting Political Decision before Taking Stance on Islamic Coalition
An invitation to attend a meeting on the recently announced Islamic coalition will be made soon and Lebanon will be among those invited, reported As Safir newspaper on Friday.
The invitation will be addressed to the Defense Ministry, which includes the Army Command, to name who will represent it at the meeting that will likely be held by the end of next week in the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh.
Concerned sources told As Safir that the army will decide its “next step” in light of what officials decide on the matter.
Politicians are divided on whether to join the Islamic coalition.
Prime Minister Tammam Salam had given Saudi Arabia Lebanon's preliminary agreement to take part in the alliance without informing other powers, which drew their criticism.
Hizbullah on Thursday rejected the call to join the coalition, saying: “This step violates the Constitution, the law and all applicable norms in Lebanon.”
It blamed Saudi Arabia for the proliferation of “the terrorist and extremist thought” in the world, accusing it of “maintaining its support for this ideology.”
"Saudi Arabia has practiced state terrorism in Yemen and it is backing the terrorist organizations in Syria, Iraq and Yemen," the party charged, while adding that Salam's decision on the matter is not binding.
Saudi Arabia unveiled the alliance, which includes 34 Arab and Islamic countries, earlier this week.
It is aimed at combating terrorism.
M.T.
D.A.
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