Phalange Party Demands Providing 'Full Support' to Army, Security Forces in Tripoli

The Phalange Party on Monday urged providing “all necessary support” to the armed and security forces to execute a large-scale security plan in the northern city of Tripoli, following the recent deadly clashes in the region.

"We stress on the importance of breaking the cycle that is controlling Tripoli and drawing the line to all deviant cases present in the city,” the party said in a released statement after the political bureau's weekly meeting.

The statement continued: “We call for providing all the needed support to the army and to the security forces and give them a 48-hour time limit before executing a large-scale security operation.”

"The security plan should seek the elimination of all personal guns and detain those that have arrest warrants issued against them for their involvement in the clashes and the mosques' bombings.”

The political bureau also condemned the “sectarian strife” attempts that was manifested in attacking a group of workers who hail from the Tripoli neighborhood of Jabal Mohsen.

"This incident is strange to the residents of Tripoli and it harms their history. This is a dangerous transformation of the relations between the Lebanese.”

At least six residents from Jabal Mohsen were wounded on Saturday when a van carrying eight passengers came under attack by masked gunmen in the Tripoli neighborhood of al-Tabbaneh near Dar al-Salam school.

The assailants took the passengers at gunpoint to local streets in the area and shot six of them in their feet.

The Phalange party lamented that the Geneva II summit is about to take place while Lebanon is still awaiting the formation of a new cabinet.

"The process of the cabinet's formation has been subjected to political calculations and numbers and the only way to get out of the current deadlock is by respecting constitutional texts and forming a council of ministers that saves Lebanon from all dangers,” the statement said.

The politburo also urged President Michel Suleiman to form a “high-level delegation” to attend the international talks.

"The delegation must adopt a united stand regarding Lebanon's sufferings that is caused by the Syrian crisis,” it stressed.

"At the forefront of the issues to be tackled must be the refugees' crisis, the Syrian violations of the northern and the eastern borders with Lebanon, and the neighboring country's involvement in bombings that took place and that were planned to happen.”

The statement urged the Lebanese delegation to propose a redistribution of refugees on nations that are capable of hosting them and saving Lebanon from a security, social and human crisis.

The conferees reiterated calls for shortening the extended term of the parliament's mandate, praising the Administration and Justice Committee's reconvening to discuss a new electoral law.

They also expressed their solidarity with the military institution, lamenting targeting its soldiers in Tripoli and the Bekaa's city of Baalbek.

"We call for drawing an end to assaulting the army and its prestige and for immediately trying the attackers after lifting any political cover they might enjoy,” the Phalange Party's statement said.