Aoun Denies Sending Fighters to Syria: I Don't Have a Militia

Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun on Monday denied accusations by Syrian rebels that the FPM has sent fighters to protect Christian places of worship in Syria, saying the claims might be a prelude to a “hostile act” against him.

“I was surprised by the claims and I would've done that publicly if I had the intention,” Aoun said during an interview with MTV, stressing that he does not have a “militia.”

“Are they plotting a hostile act against me? Maybe that is their intention and I have read their remarks carefully,” Aoun added.

Earlier on Monday, Fahd al-Masri, a spokesman for the rebel Free Syrian Army, accused Aoun of “sending groups of his supporters to fight in Syria under the pretext of defending some churches and monasteries in several Syrian regions.”

Masri also claimed that Hizbullah was providing the alleged fighters with “logistic, technical and military support.”

Aoun lashed out at the Syrian rebels, accusing them of operating in Lebanese territory, especially in the Bekaa border town of Arsal.

“What are the Syrian rebels doing in Arsal?” Aoun asked rhetorically.

He noted that Christians in Syria are facing an “additional threat.”

“War crimes are happening there, especially when rebels are entering monasteries. All international courts would put them on trial for that, because these are not military places, but rather religious places of worship,” added Aoun.

“Do they have the right to enter (the Christian Syrian town of) Maalula and its churches? These are crimes against humanity. The 42 churches are not weapons depots. Why did they destroy the monument of the Virgin Mary?” the FPM leader said.

He suggested that the proposed Geneva 2 peace conference will be turned into “a conference for combating terrorism.”

“The Qalamoun battle will continue and they started the battle in Maalula because of its symbolic nature, as it is not a strategic or military location and it is not a military target,” Aoun went on to say.

Maalula, a picturesque village cut into the cliffs some 55 kilometers north of Damascus, has long been a symbol of the ancient Christian presence in Syria. Its residents are some of the few left in the world who speak Aramaic, the language that Jesus Christ is believed to have spoken.

Rebels briefly captured the town in September, before being quickly forced back to its outskirts by regime forces. But with the army pressing an advance elsewhere in the surrounding Qalamoun region, opposition fighters seized the heart of the town once again last Monday.

Aoun noted that "resistance against Israel is a choice and protecting the northern and eastern borders (with Syria) is also a choice," noting that "Hizbullah was forced to intervene in Syria" and accusing the rival March 14 camp of facilitating the movement of weapons and fighters from Lebanon into the neighboring country.

"Some Lebanese are seeing mistakes with one eye. Who provided political cover to the Salafists in Tripoli?" Aoun asked.

On the issue of the upcoming presidential election, Aoun said: “I'm not a candidate for the presidency, unless the MPs want that. I won't accept to be a president who manages the crisis and we have tried crisis management administrations since 1990 until today, which have led to bad results at the economic and security levels.”

“If we want to build a state, the Lebanese must not be followers … Throughout history, no president has been elected by the Lebanese but rather through foreign will,” Aoun lamented.

“We have not consulted with our allies and with Hizbullah over the issue of nominations for the presidency and it's still early for me to discuss this issue and no one has told me that I'm a candidate,” he added.

Aoun pointed out that “all parties have an interest in holding the presidential election on time.”

“We're against extending of renewing the term of the president (Michel Suleiman) and we're against political vacuum. We're with the election of a new president,” Aoun underlined.

He noted that “everyone would lose in the event of a political vacuum and the election would give a chance to the Lebanese to talk to each other again.”

“The cabinet is not convening and no crucial decisions are being taken, which means that there is a political vacuum. Should the president's term be extended, we will be keeping the same officials who have led the country into this state. There is an election that we must carry out or else they would be gambling with the fate of Lebanon,” Aoun added.

He stressed that the new president must have “the ability to resolve the crisis instead of managing it” and the ability to bring together the rival parties.

Aoun said that a figure accepted by both Hizbullah and the Mustaqbal Movement would make a “good presidential candidate.”

“I had opposed the extension of (Army chief General Jean) Qahwaji's term for legal reasons, but today he is performing his duties and he must not be weakened because that would weaken the military institution,” Aoun stated.

“We always support the army's morale,” the former army commander added.

Asked about the possibility that Qahwaji might run for president, Aoun said “If the legal prerequisites are not fulfilled, I will oppose his nomination.”

When asked about a possible role for the Maronite Patriarchate in the election of a new president, the FPM leader said: “In 1989, patriarch (Nasrallah) Sfeir was asked to submit a list with the names of five presidential candidates and that experience was a failure.”

“It would be a big mistake to link the fate of the presidential election to the fate of the regime in Syria,” Aoun warned, noting that Saudi Arabia “can only influence the MPs who usually heed its instructions.”

However, Aoun voiced belief that the presidential election would be held on time next year.

Commenting on the controversy over whether or not the cabinet can convene while it is acting in caretaker capacity, Aoun said “it is the cabinet's duty to convene to discuss the urgent issues.”

“The issue of oil is an important juncture and there is negligence, not only over the issue of oil exploration, but also over the issue of the thousands of (Syrian) refugees,” Aoun added.

“I have performed my duties and pushed for a cabinet session, but if Miqati doesn't want that, then that's his business,” he said.

On the issue of the stalled cabinet formation process, Aoun said: “No one has consulted with me over the issue of the cabinet formation process and I have not asked for a specific number of ministers.”

“I don't have a problem and I would accept four portfolios in the new cabinet … A caretaker cabinet is better than a cabinet that cannot win a vote of confidence because the first has the parliament's confidence,” Aoun went on to say.

“I don't think that the cabinet will be formed anytime soon and we're heading to a crisis,” said Aoun, warning that “forming a cabinet that does not enjoy the confidence of parliament would create problems.”