Al-Mustaqbal Calls for Army Deployment on Border, Condemns Attacks by Syria's 'Regime and Opposition'

Al-Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc called on Monday the cabinet to deploy military forces on the border with Syria, condemning all attacks on Lebanese territories “be it by President Bashar Assad's regime of by the opposition forces”.

"We reject all attacks and violations of Lebanon's sovereignty regardless of their source,” the bloc said in a released statement after the MPs' weekly meeting, calling on President Michel Suleiman to deploy army forces on the border in respect to resolution 1701 as “this would assure the protection of Lebanese citizens”.

The lawmakers noted: “These attacks are not acceptable and are a proof of the Syrian regime's violent and criminal nature”.

Al-Mustaqbal urged Suleiman to seek the help of international emergency forces and to file a complaint of the violations to the United Nations and the Arab League.

“Since the beginning of Syria's war, the cabinet has not taken any measures to control the border, protect citizens or rescue refugees,” the MPs noted, holding the government responsible for the situation on the frontier.

Since the eruption of Syria's clashes in 2011, Lebanon's northern cities have been witnessing several security incidents.

A man was killed at dawn Sunday by Syrian shells that landed on the town of al-Hishe in the Wadi Khaled area that borders Syria in northern Lebanon, the National News Agency reported.

NNA identified the man as al-Hishe municipality member Ahmed Shehab. His brother Hani was injured.

Artillery, mortar fire and automatic weapons were used in battles between Syrian troops and fighters on the Lebanese side of the border overnight Saturday to Sunday, said a senior Lebanese security official.

The violence broke out a few hours after another Lebanese man, Hussein Ismail, 40, was killed by gunfire in the Lebanese area of al-Buqaiaa.

The bloc reiterated their rejection of the Orthodox Gathering's draft electoral law, expressing that it threatens religious coexistence and deepens the gap between different Lebanese communities.

"We need a format that unites the people,” the released statement stressed.

Al-Mustaqbal held the cabinet responsible for the current political situation, explaining that it did not encourage consensus over a proposal that “does not trigger sensibilities”.

“Elections must be held on time,” the MPs stated.

The rival parties are yet to agree on an electoral law after the adoption of the so-called Orthodox Gathering draft-law by the joint parliamentary committees created a sharp debate between the opposition and rival coalitions.

The polls are likely to be postponed if the parliament gives the green light to the proposal that divides Lebanon into a single district and allows each sect to vote for its own MPs under a proportional representation system.

But the proposal has been rejected by al-Mustaqbal bloc, Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat's centrist National Struggle Front, and the March 14 opposition’s Christian independent MPs. It has been also criticized by President Suleiman and Prime Minister Najib Miqati.

Commenting on the Syndicate Coordination Committee's strikes, al-Mustaqbal said: “This is a result of the cabinet's policy of clientalism and the promises it gave without fulfilling them”.

The SCC, a coalition of private and public school teachers and public sector employees, kicked off last week an open-ended strike to protest the government’s procrastination in referring the new wage scale to parliament for vote.

It has been staging since then protests near ministries and escalating its measures by forming “protest committees” to halt the work at public institutions, vowing not to back down.

The lawmakers blamed Hizbullah's weapons for the “deteriorating security situation” in the country, explaining that it weakened the state's authority.

"The state's sovereignty on all Lebanese territories should be complete and non-negotiable,” they confirmed.