Naksa Day Rally Set for June 5, Maroun al-Ras Clashes Won’t Be Repeated

Attention will be drawn to southern Lebanon on June 5 as a rally is expected to staged in commemoration of the day of the Naksa, reported As Safir on Wednesday.

High ranking military sources told the newspaper that the Lebanese army is taking the necessary precautions, stressing that the recent clashes that broke out on the Nakba Day at Maroun al-Ras will not be repeated.

“The demonstrators will not be allowed to reach the security fence along the border in order to avoid providing Israel with the opportunity to once again practice random killing,” they said.

“The army has derived lessons from the Maroun al-Ras clash and it will exercise its responsibilities to the most of its abilities in cooperation with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon,” the sources added.

“Freedom of expression is a given right, but it should have its limits to avoid dragging Lebanon towards the unknown through impulsive acts,” they said.

Meanwhile, western sources in Paris told As Safir that UNIFIL Commander Major General Alberto Asarta will soon head to Israel to discuss the Naksa Day demonstration that is scheduled to be held before the Fatima Gate in the South.

UNIFIL sources said that maintaining the peace is its and the Lebanese army’s responsibility, voicing its concern over the demonstration out of fear that clashes may once again break out.

In a related development, the Israeli army began deploying along its border with Lebanon, bolstering its presence in the area.

On May 15, a clash broke out at Maroun al-Ras when demonstrators commemorating the Nakba Day were shot at by Israeli forces as they attempted to cross into the occupied Palestinian territories.

The Naksa Day, or setback, refers to the displacement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians after the Arabs’ defeat to Israel in the 1967 war.