March 14: HDC Ignored Ghosn’s ‘Mistake’ to Salvage Lebanon from ‘Dangerous Slope’
The Higher Defense Council shied away from the claims made by Defense Minister Fayez Ghosn about the presence of al-Qaida in Lebanon in a sign that the state is aware of the dangers of such allegations, high-ranking opposition sources said.
“The disregard for the claims made by the defense minister about the presence of al-Qaida in the Bekaa (valley) proves their lack of credibility and the awareness of the state through its entire constitutional and security institutions that this political mistake could lead it down a dangerous slope particularly at the international level,” the March 14 sources told An Nahar daily published Friday.
The HDC convened at Baabda palace on Thursday. While not mentioning the word al-Qaida, it said in a statement that the conferees agreed to tighten security and prevent arms smuggling, and asked security agencies to take stronger measures to “fight terrorism.”
The meeting came after Ghosn’s statements about the operations of al-Qaida members in the eastern border town of Arsal in the Bekaa drew controversy and criticism about a multifaceted government. Premier Najib Miqati and Interior Minister Marwan Charbel refuted the claims.
But the opposition sources stressed that the HDC’s statement won’t prevent a parliamentary grilling of Ghosn in particular and the cabinet in general early next year over the issue of the security along the border with Syria.
The sources also criticized the HDC and Miqati for ignoring the infiltrations of Syrian troops and intelligence agents into the Wadi Khaled area in northern Lebanon.
They accused the cabinet and security and military agencies of “burying their heads in the sand.”
Earlier in the week, three Lebanese men were killed when Syrian troops opened fire on their vehicle from across the border.
The March 14 general-secretariat is scheduled to meet at 11:00 am Saturday and will issue a statement to announce its stance from the latest developments.
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