U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton accused Hizbullah of hijacking Lebanon’s democracy and stressed that only the Lebanese state should have monopoly on military power.
“There are many ways that a democracy can be hijacked,” Clinton told al-Arabiya Arab TV network in an interview aired Monday.
Full StoryFormer minister and AMAL Movement defector Mohammed Abdul Hamid Baidoun on Monday called on "political Shiism" in Lebanon to "correct its mistakes."
Speaking at a ceremony organized by the March 14 forces to commemorate the sixth anniversary of the assassination of ex-PM Rafik Hariri, Baidoun said: "We have said more than once that the Resistance (Hizbullah) considers its weapons sacred and that a majority of the Lebanese considers the (Special) Tribunal (for Lebanon) and justice sacred."
Full StoryOutgoing premier Saad Hariri on Monday stressed that the March 14 coalition would not agree to the rise of a Lebanese political system ruled by the influence of weapons "under the pretext of resistance" against Israel.
"When we had agreed in the (previous) ministerial Policy Statement on the equation of the people, the army and the Resistance, it was because we believe that the State embraces everyone," Hariri said at a ceremony organized by the March 14 forces to commemorate the sixth anniversary of the assassination of his father, ex-PM Rafik Hariri.
Full StoryPhalange Party leader Amin Gemayel on Monday noted that the Cedar Revolution has called for freedom, sovereignty, and independence, "but today it is also striving for justice and truth."
"In the name of the martyrs of freedom and dignity, we refuse to make further concessions," Gemayel stressed during a ceremony organized by the March 14 forces to commemorate the sixth anniversary of the assassination of former premier Rafik Hariri.
Full StoryIf the practices of the first tutelage authority had led to the Cedar Revolution, the mere signs of the emergence of another tutelage authority "will lead to countless Cedar Revolutions," Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea vowed Monday.
"They are trying once again to restore hegemony and we will confront them once more, but this time, we have learned from our mistakes and we will not fall into their trap again," Geagea added.
Full StoryPrime Minister-designate Najib Miqati reiterated that his hand was extended to the March 14 forces to form a national unity cabinet that serves Lebanon and its citizens.
“If we want our country to be united and stable … we should join hands,” Miqati told As Safir daily in remarks published Monday.
Full StoryU.S. President Barack Obama marked the sixth anniversary of the assassination of ex-premier Rafik Hariri by reaffirming his support for the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.
For the past two years, a bitter political battle has revolved around the STL which is expected to implicate Hizbullah members in the Hariri murder.
Full StoryGrand Mufti Sheikh Mohammad Rashid Qabbani stressed on Sunday that the current developments in Lebanon are a result of the 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
He said after visiting the slain premier’s grave in downtown Beirut along with a representative of the Druze spiritual leader, Ghandi Makarem: “Hariri was not like other leaders. He is not a man for Lebanon alone or for the Arabs or Muslims of the world, but he was a man of the world.”
Full StoryThe March 14 forces are set to commemorate the sixth anniversary of the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri during a ceremony on Monday during which pivotal speeches on various levels will be made, reported the daily An Nahar Sunday.
As Safir stated on Sunday that the commemoration will be an occasion for the March 14 camp to “set its work strategy for the next phase in Lebanon” based on whether it will participate in Cabinet or not.
Full StoryThe March 14 forces lauded the statement of Dar al-Fatwa, saying it conforms with the principles of all Lebanese that seek to defend their country’s democratic system and the Taef agreement.
During a meeting of several March 14 officials at Center House in downtown Beirut on Friday, the conferees said the Dar al-Fatwa’s statement “conforms with the principles of all Lebanese in defense of the democratic system, the Taef accord, the international tribunal, Lebanon’s independence and the sovereignty of the state.”
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