Qassem praises Aoun and Salam, says 'sedition' foiled
Hezbollah chief Sheikh Naim Qassem on Monday stressed that "the central problem facing Lebanon is the Israeli-American aggression."
"How can we prevent this aggression? We cannot prevent it with words, nor can we prevent it by relying on the American tyrant. Rather, we prevent it with force, and we prevent it with solidarity and unity," Qassem said in a televised speech.
"From day one, there has been incitement to stir a sedition between the army, the people and the Resistance, but thank God, the awareness on both sides led to nipping the sedition in the bud. Consequently, the sedition they wanted to create in order to ruin the country and eliminate this capability in Lebanon did not materialize," the Hezbollah leader added.
Qassem also noted that there has been "pressure" on President Joseph Aoun from "all the major powers and Arab states" that "continues unabated."
"Why are they pressuring the president? They are pressuring him to take measures that would create a rift between him and us -- that is between the state, with its leadership, and the resistance and its supporters," Qassem said.
He added that "it is true that there are differences in approach on some issues" between Aoun and Hezbollah, but added that "from a national standpoint, we are both in favor of stopping the aggression."
"We both want to liberate Lebanon, we both reject strife, and we both share the desire to revive Lebanon. Let no one try to drive a wedge between us and the President of the Republic," Qassem stressed.
He also said that MP Mohammad Raad's recent visit to Aoun was "a positive one, allowing for follow-up, coordination, managing differences, and confronting challenges by ensuring the state fulfills its responsibility to protect its people."
"We will proceed together responsibly, and later discuss the strategy -- the national security strategy -- through national cooperation. Together, we can build a strong and dignified Lebanon," Qassem pointed out.
He cautioned that the current stage is "the one that shapes the future."
"Through national unity and cooperation between the state, the army, the government, the people and the resistance, we will build Lebanon's future. Any retreat, defeat or surrender will remove Lebanon from the map of independent nations," he warned.
Qassem also praised the visit of Prime Minister Nawaf Salam to southern Lebanon.
"This visit is positive, and it is an important step on the path to building Lebanon, and I will tell you frankly: the most important thing about this visit is that he said, 'We will rebuild and we will not wait for the aggression to stop,'" Qassem added.
Source: Naharnet
| Copyright © 2012 Naharnet.com. All Rights Reserved. | https://www.naharnet.com/stories/en/318266 |