Aoun: No One Wants New Cabinet, Nusra Members Arriving in Lebanon with Suicide Belts
Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun on Tuesday noted that the new cabinet will not be formed anytime soon due to conditions and counter-conditions as well as foreign dictates, warning that the extremist al-Nusra Front has started infiltrating the country from neighboring Syria.
“I don't know who will the cabinet consist of if it will not represent the political parties. They are also speaking of a rotation of portfolios and this is shameful, that's why we realized that no one wants the cabinet to be formed and let the Lebanese act accordingly,” Aoun said after the weekly meeting of the Change and Reform bloc in Rabiyeh.
“We discussed several issues during the meeting, topped by the issue of security, as al-Nusra Front members have started arriving in the country with their suicide belts and equipment and certain parties are offering them a safe haven in Lebanon,” Aoun warned.
“Where are all the security agencies? The police, the army, the General Security and the Judicial Police? It turned out that al-Nusra Front is present in Lebanon and we can't remain silent,” he added.
The army announced on Sunday the arrest of a number of individuals for transporting weapons in the Bekaa region of Arsal.
The Beirut-based, pan-Arab television al-Mayadeen later reported that the army arrested five people -- two Syrians, a Lebanese and two Palestinians -- who were carrying "suicide vests."
"Uniforms carrying al-Nusra Front badges were found in their possession and they were on their way to Arsal's barren mountains with the aim of infiltrating Syrian territory," the National News Agency said.
“We mentioned the refugees and their numbers and we tackled the security aspect of the issue, but they accused us of racism and here we are now sitting on a keg of gunpowder,” Aoun warned.
He stressed that the caretaker cabinet “can't resign from its duties regarding the security issues.”
Asked whether Hizbullah's military intervention in Syria was the reason behind the deteriorating security situation in Lebanon, Aoun said: “Prior to Hizbullah's intervention in Syria, acts of sabotage started in the North and assassination tools were stockpiled in Sidon, that's why we are not surprised that these incidents are happening."
Commenting on the controversial issue of extending the term of Army Commander General Jean Qahwaji, Aoun said: "As long as the caretaker cabinet can convene, why do we need a law to appoint a new army commander? ... I accuse those obstructing the appointment of a new army chief of conspiracy, because this is unacceptable."
Source: Naharnet
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