Bassil Vows to Confront 'Daeshi' Politics: We are Defending All Christians, Lebanese
Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil hailed on Friday the street protests that took place on Thursday by Free Patriotic Movement supporters, saying that they have restored hope for the Christians in Lebanon.
He said during a press conference: “ We are waging the battle of defending all the Christians and Lebanese.”
“We will confront 'Daehsi' politics,” he vowed, in a reference to the Arabic acronym of the Islamic State extremist group.
“Those who took to the streets on Thursday have restored our glory days and they make us proud,” he added to reporters.
Addressing the dispute that erupted between him and Prime Minister Tammam Salam at the beginning of Thursday's cabinet session, Bassil explained: “We were deliberate in showing this quarrel before the media.”
“We sought to respond to the premier in the same manner in which he approaches us, which is through a disregard of principles,” he explained.
“We wanted to demonstrate the extent to which violations against us are being committed,” he said.
“We are concerned at cabinet with the implementation and respect of the constitution,” stated the minister.
“In the absence of the president, we can at times assume the role of the president and this issue has been disrespected,” he went on to say.
“Do you expect us to remain silent over the violations committed against the jurisdiction of the president?” Bassil wondered.
“Is there anything more important happening in the country than the disregard of Christian rights?” he asked.
“We are accused of obstructing state functioning when we attempt to defend Christian rights,” he added.
“How can cabinet decisions be taken without the FPM, Hizbullah, Tashnag Party, and Marada Movement?” he continued.
“The developments on the street allow us to respond to Salam through the media and our constitutional jurisdiction,” he stressed.
A heated exchange erupted between Salam and Bassil during a contentious cabinet session on Thursday.
The cabinet's parties later agreed to continue the thorny debate over the cabinet's decision-taking mechanism after Eid al-Fitr.
The session was accompanied by demonstrations by FPM supporters in the vicinity of the Grand Serail.
FPM chief MP Michel Aoun had called on his supporters to prepare for rallies to restore what he described as “the rights of the Christians.” Preparations for the demos began after the cabinet failed to discuss the appointment of high-ranking security and military officials.
Aoun has been lobbying for the appointment of Commando Regiment commander Chamel Roukoz, his son-in-law, as army chief.
M.T.
D.A.
| Copyright © 2012 Naharnet.com. All Rights Reserved. | https://cdn.naharnet.com/stories/en/184359 |