Qahwaji: Implementation of Security Plan Underway

Lebanon, Lebanese Army commander Gen. Jean Qahwaji announced.

He said the "military-security plan" covers, apart from Beirut, sensitive points in the north, the Bekaa and Sidon as well as the Beirut-Sidon coastline.

The plan, according to Qahwaji, coincides with appeals on religious leaders to take the initiative to spread calls for the adoption of a "moderate speech."

Qahwaji, in remarks published Friday by As-Safir newspaper, believed the Lebanese people do not want to "move backwards."

Lebanese, he said, "cling on to the State and the Army. But the problem is with some rhetoric which sometimes is the cause for tension."

Qahwaji warned against any attempt to target the military in an effort to achieve "political and media objectives and gains."

"The army is a red line and we will not stand handcuffed," he said.

Qahwaji assured that the situation in southern Lebanon is "quiet."

"There are not fears of an Israeli offensive. The military continues to shoulder its responsibilities -- defending the country against any Israeli threat or aggression," he stressed.