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GCC Condemns Terrorist Bombings, Urges Hizbullah 'Militias' to Pull Out of Syria

The Gulf Cooperation Council condemned on Wednesday the latest bombings that shook Lebanon and called on Hizbullah's “militias” to withdraw from war-ravaged Syria.

The six Arab monarchies of the Gulf said in a statement at the end of a two-day summit in Kuwait City that they “condemned the terrorist bombings that left innocent casualties in Lebanon.”

Lebanon has been rocked with a series of bombings, mainly in the Hizbullah strongholds of Beirut's southern suburbs and the eastern Bekaa Valley.

The latest bombings were suicide attacks targeting the Iranian Embassy in November.

Two blasts have also targeted Sunni mosques in the northern city of Tripoli.

The Council urged all Lebanese parties to put their nation's interest above any other interest.

The statement called for the “swift” formation of a new government to preserve the Lebanese entity and “steer it clear of the repercussions of the Syrian crisis.”

Prime Minister-designate Tammam Salam has been unable to form his cabinet over the conditions and counter conditions set by the rival March 8 and 14 camps.

He was appointed in April but has blamed the two alliances for his failure to come up with a line-up.

The GCC closing statement also called for “the withdrawal of Hizbullah militias from Syria.”

Hizbullah is openly fighting in Syria alongside troops loyal to President Bashar Assad, who is facing rebels seeking to topple his regime.

Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah vowed last month to keep his forces in Syria.

"We have said on several occasions that the presence of our soldiers on Syrian soil is to defend... Syria, which supports the resistance" against Israel, Nasrallah said.

"So long as that reason exists, our presence there is justified,” he added.


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