Qahwaji Says Controlling Border with Syria Requires 2,000 Troops
Army Commander General Jean Qahwaji stressed on Wednesday that the army deployment along the Lebanese-Syrian border requires some time, noting that the military needs a brigade of 2,000 soldiers to control the border.
He said in comments published in As Safir newspaper that the aim behind this plan is to control illegal crossings used by gunmen; however he noted that it is very difficult to control the entire border line.
“Assuming that there’s a possibility to control every meter of Lebanon’s eastern and northern border with Syria isn’t logical, it has nothing to do with the army’s efficiency and capabilities,” Qahwaji pointed out.
The army commander warned those who opened fire at the army along the border with Syria, saying the military will not hesitate to fire back with all the adequate artillery.
The cabinet decided on Monday to dispatch army reinforcements to the border area in the north, after a series of frontier incidents in recent months, some of them deadly.
Syrian troops and armed men exchanged gunfire overnight Monday in the border area and shells fell inside Lebanon, killing three civilians and wounding one.
The latest incident took place two days after clashes and blasts killed two people in the area.
Asked about the killing of Sheikh Ahmed Abdul Wahed and his companion Sheikh Mohammed Merheb at an army checkpoint in the Akkar town of al-Kweikhat on May 22, Qahwaji said: “We are keen to preserve the blood of innocent people in the first degree.”
He slammed those who launched a campaign on him saying that the blood of Abdul Wahad is more precious that his.
“I will only tell those who are agitated that everything happens at the right time,” Qahwaji said.
He denied that the army had evacuated its posts in Akkar after the incident.
“The army will not abandon Akkar… We are about to reinforce our presence in the area in order to stabilize it,” he stated.
Qahwaji told the daily that the army will continue to assume its responsibilities towards its people.
Several residents in the area of Akkar demanded the army to withdraw from its posts in Akkar after the death of Sheikh Abdul Wahed and his companion.
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