Former Premier Fouad Saniora reportedly said after the 2006 war that he feared Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah would topple the government.
In a WikiLeaks cable dated August 16, 2006, Saniora told then U.S. Ambassador Jeffrey Feltman that he was making every effort to deploy the Lebanese army as quick as possible in the south.
Full StoryCaretaker Prime Minister Saad Hariri has reportedly told former U.S. Ambassador Jeffrey Feltman that he would abolish Hizbullah once the Lebanese army is consolidated.
In a WikiLeaks cable published by al-Akhbar daily on Monday, Hariri told Feltman during a meeting in Qoreitem on August 20, 2006 that as long as the army is weaker than Hizbullah, then it should be in a less threatening position.
Full StoryLebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea stated on Thursday that the March 14 camp does not deny what was reported in the recently published WikiLeaks cables.
He said during a press conference: “All that was said in the cables, I repeat every day. All that we stated is true and we are free to perceive them as we wish.”
Full StoryProgressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat stated that contacts between him and caretaker Prime Minister Saad Hariri are completely severed, saying that he will not agree to an individual reconciliation with him.
He said in an interview in Al-Afkar magazine that will be published on Friday: “I support Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati and if Hariri believes that Miqati betrayed him, then he should explain his statement or retract it. It is best if he reconsiders his position.”
Full StoryCaretaker Defense Minister Elias Murr said in a WikiLeaks cable published by al-Akhbar daily on Thursday that Speaker Nabih Berri was eagerly waiting to break his political alliance with Hizbullah.
Berri “is praying to liberate himself politically from Hizbullah,” the cable quoted Murr as saying during a meeting with a U.S. diplomat on August 10, 2006.
Full StoryProgressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat reportedly said immediately after the end of the 2006 war between Israel and Hizbullah that if the Jewish state pulled out from occupied Lebanese territories, it would abolish an essential pressure point off the Shiite group.
Israel “is speeding up the withdrawal,” Jumblat said during a meeting dated August 15, 2006, according to a WikiLeaks cable published by al-Akhbar newspaper on Thursday.
Full StoryThe March 14 General Secretariat warned on Wednesday that any compliance with Hizbullah’s agenda will place Lebanon at odds with the Arab world that is yearning for freedom, justice, and democracy.
It said in a statement after its weekly meeting: “Hizbullah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah proved that Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati is not playing a centrist role in Lebanon when he stated that the next government will be subject to his conditions on the arms and the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.”
Full StoryThe United States sought to use the indictment of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon to back Caretaker Premier Saad Hariri after his government was toppled by the Hizbullah-led alliance, As Safir daily reported Wednesday.
The newspaper said that the U.S. administration contacted tribunal officials immediately after the toppling of the cabinet to use the indictment as a political pressure aimed at bringing back Hariri to power and sidelining Hizbullah.
Full StoryCaretaker Premier Saad Hariri telephoned Bahrain’s King Hamad reiterating to him his condemnation of all acts that harm the interests of the Lebanese either in Bahrain or in the rest of Arab and Gulf countries.
An Nahar newspaper said Wednesday that Hariri held the telephone conversation with King Hamad on Tuesday.
Full StoryLebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea has reportedly called for making promises on the Shebaa farms and stressed that disarming Hizbullah was the key to toppling former President Emile Lahoud.
In a WikiLeaks cable published by al-Akhbar daily, Geagea said during a meeting with U.S. diplomats on August 12, 2006 that “Speaker Nabih Berri who is still controlled” by Hizbullah will not be able to support a move to topple Lahoud.
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