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Hariri: Arab-Turk Force Must Be Formed if U.N. Fails to OK Syria No-Fly Zone

Former premier Saad Hariri on Monday said the Arab League should seek a “no-fly zone” over revolt-hit Syria, stressing that “everything must be done” to stop what he called a “massacre.”

“The Arab League should go to the U.N. and (seek) a no-fly zone (over Syria) and if Russia vetoes (the resolution) then a joint force should be formed with Turkey,” Hariri said on the social networking website Twitter.

Syrian President “Bashar (al-Assad) thinks he can outsmart the Arab League and the world, he will fall so hard,” Hariri tweeted in English.

Asked by a Twitter user to comment on Defense Minister Fayez Ghosn’s recent remarks that Qaida members were “hiding” in the Bekaa town of Arsal, which borders Syria, Hariri said: “There is only one al-Qaida: it’s Bashar's shabiha (militiamen) and killers.”

Turning to Lebanon, the ex-PM said “dialogue about the defense strategy is a joke because you are talking to someone who doesn't listen.”

Asked about the wage hike plan recently approved by the government, Hariri said he thinks “it will be harmful for the economy.”

Source: Naharnet


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