Aoun: We Will Support al-Rahi’s Position on Arms When the Time Comes
Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun revealed on Tuesday that armed individuals had infiltrated Lebanon in the east, indirectly implying that they had arrived from Syria.
He said after the Change and Reform bloc’s weekly meeting: “We will support Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi’s position on the possession of arms in Lebanon when the time comes.”
He added that Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah also supports the MP’s view on the matter.
The patriarch had said on Sunday: “The state is obligated to guarantee the people’s safety, gather all arms, and limit security duties to the state, which will therefore ensure an arms-free Beirut and arms-free Lebanon.”
On Defense Minister Fayez Ghosn’s claims that al-Qaida members had infiltrated Syria through Lebanon, Aoun said: “The minister is the most qualified individual to make statements on al-Qaida.”
“The fact that another minister does not have information on the matter does not mean that he is denying the allegations,” stated the FPM leader.
The minister had said last week that members of al-Qaida had entered the Bekaa town of Arsal and later infiltrated Syria.
Addressing the twin bombings that killed over 40 people in Damascus on Friday, Aoun remarked: “Destruction cannot change the regime.”
The Syrian regime accused al-Qaida of being behind the attack.
The Lebanese opposition has slammed Ghosn’s remarks, warning of attempts to spread the unrest in Syria to Lebanon.
Source: Naharnet
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