Walid Phares Tells Hariri 'Hizbullah Invaded Beirut, Assassinated Politicians, Citizens'
Lebanese-born American adviser to members of the US Congress Walid Phares replied on Friday to Prime Minister Saad Hariri's comments about Hizbullah's weapons reminding of several encounters when the party “utilized its weapons in the capital Beirut and elsewhere.”
“Mr PM Hariri, Hizbullah has invaded Beirut and attacked Mount Lebanon with heavy weapons in 2008, assassinated politicians, officers and citizens as of 2005. They used their arms against Lebanese. They should be disarmed under UNSC 1559,” said Phares on his Twitter page on Friday.
Phares' remarks came after PM Hariri said in an interview to French Paris Match weekly magazine a day earlier that “in Lebanon, Hizbullah has a political role. It has weapons, of course, but it is not using them on Lebanese soil.”
Hariri's comments drew a storm of criticism from Hizbullah's critics which made him clarify his remarks affirming that his comments were misunderstood.
“What I said in (the) Paris Match (interview) was clear like the sun. We have a truce with Hizbullah the same as they have a truce with us. We do not deny what happened in the past, but we are seeking to protect the country's stability whereas some parties are seeking to stir strife in the country,” Hariri had said.
Source: Naharnet
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