Mawlawi says 'self-security' is 'rejected and prohibited'

Caretaker Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi on Thursday stressed that security agencies will “prevent any form of strife.”

“All security agencies will not accept any form of self-security,” Mawlawi added, emphasizing that “Lebanon will not accept self-security, which is rejected and prohibited.”

His remarks come after the disappearance and murder of Lebanese Forces official Pascal Sleiman at the hands of a Syrian gang pushed some in Lebanon to call for “self-security” in certain regions.

“We will not allow security tensions on Lebanese soil,” Mawlawi added.

“Resolving problems should be through resorting to the law and constitution and enforcing the Interior Ministry’s circulars,” the minister said.

Noting that “Lebanon cannot bear economic refugees,” Mawlawi called on municipalities to implement the laws while reassuring that the army and security forces will be keen on preserving order and security.

Mawlawi had on Monday announced that there are 1.2 million unregistered Syrians in Lebanon.

“Out of two million displaced Syrians, there are only 300,000 who have residency permits while 800,000 are registered and 1.2 million are unregistered,” Mawlawi said.

Mawlawi said earlier in April that Pascal Sleiman’s murder signals the need to restrict the number of refugees entering the country from neighboring Syria.