Geagea Confirms Assassination Attempt: We Won’t Halt Our Revolution No Matter How Hard they Try
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea revealed on Wednesday that he was the victim of an assassination attempt at his Maarab residence.
He announced during a press conference: “We will not halt our revolution no matter how hard they try and political leaders must take the necessary security precautions.”
He explained that on Wednesday morning, as he was taking a stroll in his garden, he leaned over to pick a flower soon after which he heard loud gunshots.
He threw himself on the ground as his security personnel came to his aid.
Security forces were immediately called to the scene and they extracted two bullets, ranging between 12.7 and 14.5mm, from a wall at the scene, he continued.
Geagea said that the operation needed more than one person to execute, thanking the security forces for their prompt response.
Furthermore, he revealed that the security forces are currently in pursuit of the assailants, who have fled to the outskirts of Maarab.
“I have always said that assassination attempts are a message to the would-be victim, but this time the assailants wanted the attack to be the final message,” said the LF chief.
“We have adopted political rhetoric for 40 years and they have responded with assassinations,” he noted.
“Why did they assassinate former Premier Rafik Hariri?” he asked.
“All that he did was acquire greater power than they had given him and it was clear that he was likely to acquire a parliamentary majority during the 2005 elections,” Geagea explained.
“Today’s incident is a continuation of the series of assassinations and assassination attempts that we thought had stopped after the 2008 Doha agreement,” he remarked.
“I am not accusing anyone of being behind my attempted assassination even though I have my own thoughts on the matter,” he stated.
“Those behind this attack are strictly professional given the type of weapon that was used and the distance from which it was executed,” he explained.
He stressed that the Maarab compound was not breached and that the attacker had carried out the attack from a distance of up to four kilometers using very advanced equipment.
“I believe that the wave of political assassinations in Lebanon has returned and I urge political leaders, who I won’t name, to take precautions,” he added.
“I won’t name potential targets, but I will say that there is one camp in Lebanon has not been and will not be attacked,” Geagea noted.
“They are seeking to eliminate national figures in Lebanon. What have we exercised in the past seven years besides politics?” he asked.
“I am certain that a team on the internal scene is involved in my assassination attempt and I will leave it up to the investigations to uncover the truth,” he said.
Developments over the past seven years have demonstrated that the decision to assassinate a figure is prompted when that individual “gains power greater than what is allowed,” he stated.
“No matter what they do, the revolt in Syria and our revolution will not stop until the rise of the state is achieved,” stressed Geagea.
Source: Naharnet
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