Reports: Christian Leaders Disagreed on Hizbullah Arms but Agreed to Meet Again

The four Christian leaders who met in Bkirki on Tuesday disagreed on Hizbullah’s weapons, An Nahar daily said, but confirmed that the officials would meet again after the Christian-Muslim summit next month.

An Nahar said Wednesday that the meeting, which was held under the sponsorship of Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi, was calm. The dialogue began with remarks by Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun who defended his alliance with Hizbullah and stressed the need to preserve it.

He denied that Hizbullah was seeking “to turn Lebanon into an Islamic republic,” the daily said.

Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea, in his turn, defended his alliance with the March 14 coalition and Caretaker Premier Saad Hariri and informed the conferees about the achievements of the Cedar Revolution.

As for Marada movement leader Suleiman Franjieh, he defended Syrian President Bashar Assad’s regime and considered it a backup for Lebanon and the minorities in the region, including Christians.

Aoun and Franjieh also said the country would be targeted without Hizbullah’s weapons, sources told An Nahar. But Geagea and Phalange party leader Amin Gemayel stressed that the arms should be confined within the legitimate state institutions.

Gemayel said during the meeting that if the officials were incapable of agreeing on major issues that concern Christians, then they should discuss topics that threaten the sect such as the naturalization of Palestinians and demographic changes.

According to the newspaper, the conferees also discussed the cabinet and agreed that the government formation process should be speeded up.

An Nahar said that the conferees agreed to hold a second meeting after the spiritual summit that is scheduled to be held in Bkirki on May 12.

Bishop Boulos Matar was tasked with making the necessary contacts to set the stage for another meeting among the four top Maronite officials, it added.

Meanwhile, LF circles told An Nahar and As Safir dailies that Geagea met with his party officials after the Bkirki meeting and informed them to deal with the FPM and Marada the same way the Lebanese Forces deals with other parties.

This step includes stopping media campaigns against the parties, the circles said.

They also described the Bkirki meeting as “friendly,” saying there was no tension and the leaders, mainly Geagea and Aoun, exchanged jokes.

The circles added that a handshake between Franjieh and Geagea “meant that the personal problem between them was over.”