Report: March 14 Says President's Position on Hizbullah's Arms Refutes the Constitution

A statement made by President Michel Aoun on Sunday stressing that Hizbullah's arms do not contradict with the State, has triggered a number of reactions concerning his position, media reports said on Monday.

An unnamed prominent source from the March 14 coalition criticized the stance and pointed out saying: “The statement made by President of the Republic contradicts provisions of the constitution and the Defense Law,” he told al-Joumhouria daily

The source who spoke in an interview to the daily asked astounded: “The Free Patriotic Movement (founded by Aoun) believes that electing a Christian MP with the votes of Muslims constitutes a blow to the National Pact. What can we now describe the leniency as for the President's jurisdictions being the chief of the armed forces?”

On Sunday, in an interview on the Egyptian TV channel CBC, Aoun said “As long as there is Israeli-occupied land and as long as the army is not strong enough to fight Israel, we sense that there is a need for the presence of the resistance's arms so that they complete the army's weapons.”

The president noted, emphasizing that “certainly Hizbullah's arms do not contradict with the State and are an essential component of the means to defend Lebanon.”

The March 14 source added: “President of the Republic has sworn to respect the Constitution. The Defense Law expressly states that when Lebanon suffers any danger, all armed forces that operate according to their own systems are placed under the command of the army commander.”