Promotions from Colonel to Brig-Gen. Halted over Hassan’s Failure to be Promoted
President Michel Suleiman has halted the decision to promote officers in all security institutions because of the objection over the promotion of the head of the Internal Security Forces Intelligence Bureau Wissam al-Hassan, reported the daily An Nahar on Saturday.
Prominent March 14 sources told the daily that Suleiman froze the promotions at the behest of Hizbullah and Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun over their opposition to Hassan’s promotion.
The Intelligence Bureau chief has been up for promotion since July.
The promotion is not restricted to him, but it includes officers in the army and ISF.
“The problem lies in the promotion of officers in the rank of colonel to brigadier general, which should be settled by the army and security chiefs,” added the sources.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Najib Miqati’s sources told the daily that the decision over the bill over the promotion of officers is still in the hands of Interior Minister Marwan Charbel and it has not yet been transferred to the premiership.
As Safir newspaper reported on Saturday that Hizbullah and the FPM are still insistent on “removing all security symbols of the Hariri regime, especially individuals linked to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.”
The daily al-Liwaa said on Saturday that Charbel will try to tackle this issue once he returns to Beirut from his trip to France.
The March 8 camp has been critical of Hassan’s work in the past, accusing of him, among other things, of leaking the STL indictment in July.
| Copyright © 2012 Naharnet.com. All Rights Reserved. | https://cdn.naharnet.com/stories/en/18190 |