Aoun: Syria Regime Must Remain Secular, Lebanon Security Won't Deteriorate Further
Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun on Tuesday reassured that the security situation in Lebanon will not deteriorate further in the near future, noting that the regime in strife-torn Syria “must remain secular because there are religious minorities.”
“I don't see partitioning in Lebanon and the security situation will not deteriorate to an extent that exceeds what happened in the past few days,” Aoun said in an interview on his movement’s mouthpiece OTV.
Aoun, however, lamented that the security officials “are not responding promptly enough to the sensitive issues.”
Voicing confidence in the army’s coherence, Aoun said: “Our army is the last to disintegrate and the first to unite, because it has a patriotic spirit and this is what it is implementing on the ground.”
Commenting on the latest deadly clashes in the northern city of Tripoli, Aoun warned that “there are attempts to turn the incidents in the North into sectarian ones.”
“There are major violations happening on Lebanese territory, such as the infiltration of gunmen and arms smuggling, which makes it normal to witness chaos in Akkar,” he added.
Asked about the latest spate of kidnappings that targeted Syrian, Turkish, Kuwaiti and Lebanese citizens, Aoun said: “If we want to criticize the trend of blocking the airport road and kidnappings, we must first take into account the first event: the abduction of the 11 Lebanese (pilgrims) in Syria and the reports about their death in an air raid.”
“How do you want the citizens to react?” Aoun asked.
“I'm not justifying kidnappings, counter-kidnappings or the blocking of roads, but we must first condemn the action before condemning the reaction,” he added.
Lebanon has been grappling with heightened security fears after a recent spate of kidnappings in retaliation for the abduction of Lebanese citizens in Syria.
Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, the UAE and Bahrain have ordered their nationals to leave the country immediately in the face of threats, particularly against Saudis and Qataris.
Turkey also advised its nationals to avoid non-essential travel to Lebanon after the kidnappings which included two Turkish citizens, while the U.S. has warned its citizens of “an increased possibility of attacks” against them in Lebanon.
The powerful al-Meqdad clan said its “military wing” abducted more than 20 Syrians and a Turkish national in Lebanon in retaliation for the abduction of a clan member, Hassan al-Meqdad, near Damascus.
Dozens of Syrians were also kidnapped and Syrian-owned shops vandalized in Beirut’s southern suburbs after unconfirmed reports that 11 Lebanese pilgrims taken hostage in Syria on May 22 had been killed in an airstrike on the Aleppo town of Aazaz.
“Turkey is not our enemy but rather a brotherly country, the same as Qatar and Saudi Arabia, although they have distanced themselves from us. Instead of talking about Lebanon's stability, let them find solutions to what's happening, because they are the ones who are supporting the Free Syrian Army,” Aoun said.
The rebel Free Syrian Army has been accused of abducting the 11 pilgrims in Aazaz and Hassan al-Meqdad near Damascus.
“The friendly and brotherly countries have disregarded the issue of the abductees,” Aoun decried.
Asked about the recent arrest of former minister Michel Samaha on charges of conspiring with Syrian security chief Maj. Gen. Ali Mamlouk to carry out bombings and assassinations in Akkar, Aoun said “the issue has become an issue of political exploitation and media outlets are also taking advantage of this matter.”
“Lebanon is an arena for the world's intelligence agencies, that's why I won't accuse anyone or acquit anyone and I will leave the issue to the judiciary to perform its duty,” he added.
Addressing the issue of the 2013 parliamentary elections, Aoun said “nothing can torpedo the elections other than a regional war,” but warned that elections cannot be held in Akkar and Tripoli “if the security situation (there) remains the same.”
“I'm willing to ally with the Lebanese Forces and the Phalange Party if they convince al-Mustaqbal Movement of the electoral law proposed by the Orthodox Gathering,” Aoun said of the law under which each sect would elect its own representatives.
Commenting on the issue of national dialogue, Aoun said the priority must be given to “the proliferation of arms and the absence of the state.”
He stressed that “Hizbullah's arms are necessary because they enable us to confront Israel.”
Turning to the developments in Syria, Aoun said “the regime in Syria must remain secular because there are religious minorities.”
“There are Druze, Christians and Alawites, so a theocratic regime cannot work,” he said, voicing fears of an Islamist takeover of the country.
Aoun acknowledged that “what's happening in Syria is an uprising.”
“We have been calling for a change in the regime, but we do not support the cycle of violence which is being fueled by foreign countries,” he added.
“The war is an American-European war that is being waged through the Syrian people. They want to change the regime because they consider it to be an obstacle to peace with Israel and an economic obstacle because it is not allowing the passage of oil from Turkey to Europe,” he noted.
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