Change and Reform Warns of Repeating Shaker al-Absi Scenario in North

The Change and Reform parliamentary bloc on Tuesday hailed the “preemptive operation” waged by the army in the northern regions of Tripoli and Minieh, calling for completing the security plan until the eradication of “all hubs of crime and terrorism.”

“We hope that the phenomenon of (fugitive Fatah al-Islam chief Shaker) al-Absi will not be replicated in Tripoli and Minieh,” ex-minister Salim Jreissati said after the bloc's weekly meeting, which was held only hours after bloc chief MP Michel Aoun met with Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Latif Daryan and Speaker Nabih Berri.

Jreissati was referring to the 2007 disappearance of al-Absi in the wake of months of deadly fighting with the Lebanese army at the Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp.

In a similar scenario, top militants Shadi al-Mawlawi, Osama Mansour and Sheikh Khaled Hoblos vanished as the army entered their hideouts in Tripoli's Bab al-Tabbaneh and the nearby Minieh following days of fierce clashes that started on Friday evening.

During the bloc's meeting, Aoun warned of “the dormant cells, which require the continuation of the raids in Tripoli and Minieh,” said Jreissati.

“The general also called for patience and wisdom in addressing the case of the captive servicemen without exploiting the feelings of the hostages' families,” he added, referring to troops and policemen who were abducted by jihadist militants during deadly battles with the army in Arsal in early August.

Jreissati said the bloc hailed the army's “preemptive operation in Tripoli and Minieh,” noting that Aoun “had several times warned that 'consensual security' is not beneficial for stability.”

“The security plan must be completed in order to eradicate the hubs of crime and terrorism,” he added.

Referring to the stalled Saudi and Iranian pledges of military assistance to Lebanon, Jreissati said: “We insist on 'freeing' the donations pledged for the Lebanese army, which have been impeded for unknown reasons and some of which have been rejected.”

On the proposed extension of parliament's term, Jreissati stressed that “the bloc's principled stance is against extension.”

“We will express our stance at the appropriate time and with the necessary means. You know that we don't maneuver or make adventures in such sensitive issues and you will know our decisions when the time is right,” he added.

The bloc also lauded the Lebanese government's decision to “endorse the paper devised by the ministerial panel over the (Syrian) refugees in Lebanon ahead of taking part in the Berlin conference,” said Jreissati.

“The important thing is that the idea of setting up camps will not be proposed again and strict border control will be imposed, in addition to protecting the Lebanese workforce,” he noted.

Y.R.