Geagea: Govt. Must Issue Decision Binding Hizbullah to Withdraw Fighters from Syria
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea noted on Monday that the attack launched by gunmen from Syria against Hizbullah positions in the eastern region of Brital demonstrates the need for the government to take the necessary action to guarantee the safety of Lebanese territories.
He told the Central News Agency: “The government should take a binding decision to force Hizbullah to withdraw from Syria.”
“It should then provide the Lebanese army with the necessary support to completely control the Lebanese-Syrian border in accordance to United Nations Security Council resolution 1701,” he suggested.
Hizbullah's withdrawal from Syria will also ensure the release of soldiers and policemen abducted by extremists in August from the northeastern border town of Arsal.
“The government's avoidance of addressing the issue of Hizbullah's involvement in Syria demonstrates that it is shying away from its responsibility as the party's meddling in the neighboring country will lead all the Lebanese, especially the Shiites, towards more crises, which we can do without,” Geagea remarked.
Later on Monday, the March 14 General Secretariat emphasized its commitment that the Lebanese government alone have the sole authority in defending Lebanon.
It rejected Hizbullah's defending of the Lebanese border due to its involvement in the fighting in Syria and “because such a development will pave the way for illegitimate groups to take up arms,” it explained.
“Placing the border under the authority of legitimate Lebanese and international powers will avoid us further political embarrassments and ensure the stability of the Bekaa region similar to that witnessed in the South since 2006,” it noted.
Hizbullah said on Sunday that at least five of its fighters were killed along with "dozens" of gunmen in clashes that erupted in the town of Nabi Sbat in eastern Lebanon near the border with Syria.
Lebanon's border with Syria is not officially defined and much of it is porous and unpatrolled, with local residents, smugglers and others moving freely across it.
Hizbullah maintains several military posts along inaccessible parts of the border, and it rarely gives official details on clashes with jihadists or other fighters.
M.T.
H.K.
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