Jumblat: No One Would Have Ever Thought Resistance's Arms Would Be Turned to Internal Scene
Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat stated that political difference should never escalate into armed clashes, regardless of how great the dispute, reported al-Joumhouria newspaper on Saturday.
He said before his visitors while reminiscing about the “futile” Lebanese civil war: “At the time, no human would ever have imagined that the Islamic resistance would turn its arms towards the internal scene.”
He also remembered his past and current alliance with Speaker Nabih Berri “who is still playing a central role in maintaining stability in Lebanon.”
“He chose the state over militias through directing his AMAL movement towards politics instead of military practices,” added the MP.
Jumblat added that he never regretted handing over his party's weapons to the state at the end the 1975-90 civil war.
Addressing Syria, he told his visitors: “Now that we are living in peace, we don't want to grant the regime what it failed to achieve through its bombs and assaults against us.”
“All sides seeking the country's liberty are possible targets for attacks,” he continued.
“They want to rid Lebanon of its leaders in order to keep it to themselves,” he added.
Commenting on the 2013 parliamentary elections, Jumblat refused to delve into the details of his possible alliances, revealing however that several meetings had been held with Mustaqbal Movement members to coordinate political and electoral stances.
He added that “modest” meetings were held with the Lebanese Forces members “to determine whether an alliance could be struck with it, but it is too soon to reveal the names of candidates.”
Asked by one of the visitors about what is preventing him from allying himself with LF leader Samir Geagea, Jumblat responded: “Nothing, but we do not want to provoke the other camp and make it believe that we are seeking to isolate it.”
“There is no room for isolation in our books and I call on you to be open to all sides, even the powers that you are suspicious of,” he said.
“In the end we will all meet at the national dialogue table to agree on our future in the country, where one camp cannot be victorious over the other,” stressed the PSP leader.
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