Reports: Army Asks Prosecution to Sue MP Merehbi for Inciting Sectarian Strife
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية
The army is seeking to sue al-Mustaqbal bloc MP Moeen al-Merehbi “on charges of inciting sectarian strife,” media reports said on Friday.
MTV said “the army asked the public prosecution to take legal action against MP Moein al-Merehbi on charged of inciting sectarian strife.”
For its part OTV said “the public prosecution has decided to prosecute Merehbi at the request of the Army Command.”
The development comes after the Internal Security Forces Intelligence Branch arrested former minister Michel Samaha on Thursday "for security reasons." LBCI and MTV reported that the former minister confessed to planning bombings that would have been carried out during Ramadan iftars in northern Lebanon.
"Samaha confessed to smuggling explosives in his car from Syria to Lebanon," reported LBCI. Samaha is known for his pro-Syrian regime views and media reports say he served as an advisor to Syrian President Bashar Assad.
On July 31 the Army Command announced that it had “launched measures aimed at prosecuting MP Moeen al-Merehbi” after he “insisted on attacking the military institution and insulting its leadership,” noting that from now on it “will not comment on the remarks of the aforementioned MP.”
Earlier, Merehbi had slammed Army Commander General Jean Qahwaji as an “unsuccessful person,” accusing him of being “responsible for all the mistakes and seditions.”
The lawmaker also said the army commander is “an employee who should do his job,” accusing him of “exploiting the (military) institution in order to become the next president of the republic.”
In a statement issued by the Army Command in response to Merehbi’s remarks, the military institution said: “Let the lawmaker know that all the officers and soldiers of the army are not his employees, but rather the servants of all the Lebanese people, and they only abide by the decisions of the legitimate authorities and the collective national will.”
Merehbi hit back later, telling the Kuwaiti daily al-Jarida that “the army’s statement is very silly and full of lies as usual.”
“I am willing to resign, together with Army Commander Jean Qahwaji, and let us resort to some trustworthy judges in order to tell who is negligent and who is exploiting his position for personal gains,” Merehbi added.
Merehbi has been locked in a war of words with the military institution ever since the shooting death in May of Sheikh Ahmed Abdul Wahed at an army checkpoint in Akkar.
11 August 2012, 01:15
00
This is silly what next the ISF suing Mo Raad and Nabil Nicolas come on. General coffee boy is taking ridiculous steps to become president. The Lebanese army is not his property and he cannot use it's apparatus to advance his presidential bid, he is our employee if he doesn't like it he can resign and go into the private sector and like the rest of us work for a living.
11 August 2012, 01:20
81
While people have a right to their opinion, there are some limits to this, especially as an MP. He may have his personal opinions, but he should keep them to himself. Not only does it make him and his supporters look bad, it also undermines the army.
Any remarks about the army should be in closed sessions. This applies to both M8 and M14.
11 August 2012, 01:33
00
ya qahwaji , u cannot equalize MP MERHEBI to samaha, u are already a burned man in the lebanese army
11 August 2012, 04:25
011
Just to add: it was only yesterday the head of the thugs parliamentary group, Raad, referred to the Intelligence Bureau as a "Suspicious" apparatus and attacked some judges.... why don't those "voices" who are advocating suing an MP for referring to the army command as "unsuccessful" also sue Raad and his likes? Double standards indeed....
11 August 2012, 05:24
14
this will go nowhere and is just an intimidation: MPs have immunity, and after all, the army are just employees who execute the orders of the political MPs.
11 August 2012, 05:24
24
open letter to our president:
after the arrest of samaha and knowing the details of his plot under the orders of his master bashar, you are kindly asked by the Lebanese people to close the syrian ambassy in Beirut, and go to the interntional court to open a new case against the murderor bashar assad.
you are in charge of maintaining the integrity of Lebanon, so kindly do act as you should.
11 August 2012, 17:03
10
M8 and M14 supporters have been so much brainwashed that they only perceive the opposite camp as absolute evil.
It is true that M8 have strong ties with Iran and Syria, just as M14 have strong ties with the US and KSA.
But we should never forget the 2 camps represent also Lebanese realities, Lebanese hopes, dreams, aspirations, and fears, and both are legitimate as different and opposite as they may look... Forgetting that is criminal; always remembering that will save us
12 August 2012, 02:32
00
Indeed. Syria harmed us with American blessings and encouragements. Assad Senior was very useful to them, so was Khomeiny... And KSA gave us the Taef agreements which turned our sectarian constitution from bad to worse...
