Army Says Qahwaji Only Credible Source to Give Statements to Media

The army urged on Thursday media outlets not to publish any information about the military during the delicate situation that Lebanon and the region are passing through, unless it was issued by the army command or army chief Gen. Jean Qahwaji.

According to a communique issued by the Army Command it pointed out that there is no high-ranking military source that has the right to issue statements about the army other than its leader or what the Army Command discloses.

“No high-ranking military source has the right to say any information about the army... All statements quoting this military source are not based on facts,” the statement said.

The statement is referring to a report published on Thursday in As Safir newspaper, whereby a high-ranking military source considered the latest clashes in the northern city of Tripoli between the rival neighborhoods of Bab al-Tabbaneh and Jabal Mohsen a Sunni-Sunni conflict, noting that “some parties are trying to topple the current cabinet by creating tension in the streets.”

“Tripoli is the victim of the its own politicians, who are covering up for the armed men,” the source said.

Concerning the Syrian refugees fleeing the crisis in their country into neighboring Lebanon, the military source said that their numbers have neared 300,000.

“Most of them are being used in security incidents in return for money” and enjoy political cover, the source said.

On the request filed by the Internal Security Forces Intelligence Bureau to obtain the text messages (SMS) circulated among the Lebanese, the military source said that it infringes on the freedom of citizens.

“What's dangerous is that the security agency would obtain personal and work-related secrets,” the source stated.

The cabinet rejected on Wednesday during a session at the Grand Serail to provide the Intelligence Bureau with the full text messages data, saying that it will only hand over the data of “suspicious” numbers.