Lebanon lays assassinated general to rest

 

The Lebanese Armed Forces buried assassinated General Francois Hajj on Friday, invoking the symbolism of the highly emotional event to call for an end to deep political division that have brought the country to a standstill.

 

Thousands crowded into the Maronite basilica at Harissa, north of Beirut, as the flag-draped coffin of the LAF”s chief of operations – killed along with his bodyguard, First Sergeant Kheirallah Hedwan, by a car bomb on Wednesday – was carried in. Mourners applauded as a gesture of respect for Hajj, who directed the military”s campaign against Islamist militants at Nahr al-Bared last summer.

 

The funeral Mass was presided over by Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Butros Sfeir, who lamented the “huge tragic loss” of a brave leader. It was also carefully orchestrated by the military as a call for national unity and reconciliation.

 

Church bells tolled as Hajj”s coffin was carried into the basilica by army officers. Dozens of officers and enlisted men stood at attention, while other saluted, some weeping, as the coffin went by. A number of high-ranking army officers flanked the coffin at the altar, swords drawn.

 

Across the country, a day of national mourning was observed as schools and universities closed and flags flew at half-mast.

 

Earlier, Hajj”s remains were brought from the LAF Hospital in Badaro to his home in Baabda, where residents showered the coffin with rice and rose petals. An honor guard lined the street as the coffin was carried by officers and an army band played a funeral dirge. The cortege was escorted by LAF helicopters all the way to Harissa.

 

The LAF”s commander, General Michel Suleiman, vowed to catch the killers.

 

“Be assured, O heroic martyr, that we will not spare any effort in hunting down your assassins so that they get their just punishment,” Suleiman said in a statement read out at the funeral by Major General Shawqi al-Masri. “Your blood was not spilled in vain; it will pave the road to Lebanon”s unity.”

 

The statement called on all Lebanese politicians to take a “historic stance” to build “bridges of trust” between rival parties and achieve reconciliation and consensus rapidly, without setting pre-conditions.

 

“The spilled blood of the martyr requires from us sacrifices to stop all political wrangling, so that mutual trust emerges as the only guarantee for all parties,” Suleiman said.

 

“These messages in blood,” he added, “do not target the army alone, but target our nation as a whole.” He urged rival parties to abandon self-interest and unite on common ground.

 

“The hand of treachery, by targeting you, our heroic martyr, has assailed our military establishment, thinking by doing so it can deter the army from carrying out its national duty,” Suleiman”s said in his statement. “What the terrorists failed to realize is that every time they kill one of us the army”s resolve to overcome all dangers and difficulties only increases.”

 

“This is a huge tragic loss; it is not just about an officer but about a nation thrown into danger,” Sfeir told the mourners.

 

The prelate added that despite the loss, the army would remain the “nation”s shield and protector, as it proved

at Nahr al-Bared.”

 

“Assassinations have continued without mercy for three years, and today the hand of treachery has reached the army and its brave leaders,” Sfeir said. He added that Lebanon continues to lose many of the “most passionate defenders” of its flag, its identity and its principles.

“The victims have been from among the nation”s MPs, the finest of its children and its defenders, whether they championed the free word or held courageous views and ideas and refused to bow down,” Sfeir added. “It is as if [the 170 army soldiers who perished at Nahr al-Bared] were not enough to satisfy those envious of our peaceful country, which only wants what is good for all peoples, especially those closest to us.”

 

The Maronite bishop of Tyre, Shukrallah Nabil al-Hajj, read out a papal blessing on the deceased from Pope Benedict XVI, who sent his condolences on Hajj”s death at a “crucial and critical moment in the country”s history.”

 

The cortege left Harissa at mid-day and began its long journey south, arriving  in Hajj”s hometown of Rmeish six hours later. As the procession passed through Sidon, mourners lined both sides of the road. A huge banner read “The South embraces its martyred son, General Francois Hajj.”

 

The head of the municipality of Sidon and Zahrani, Abdel-Rahman al-Bizri, was on hand to pay his respects to Hajj”s son Elie, who expressed his gratitude to all who attended.

 

“I want to thank you and all the people of the South because you did not forget this hero and know his true worth more than anyone,” Hajj said.

 

After reaching Rmeish, the coffin was paraded through the streets of the village before Hajj was laid to rest at the family plot. His close relatives later received condolences at the family home in Rmeish.

 

Apart from Suleiman, among those attending the funeral were: Defense Minister Elias Murr, representing Premier Fouad Siniora; MP Antoine Khoury, representing Speaker Nabih Berri; former President Amin Gemayel; Change and Reform bloc leader MP Michel Aoun; Democratic Gathering head MP Walid Jumblatt; and Lebanese Forces boss Samir Geagea.

 

State prosecutor Said Mirza told The Daily Star that investigators are “working silently” on uncovering the perpetrators behind the assassination of Lebanese Armed Forces operations chief, General Francois Hajj. “The moment we have anything to say we will announce it, I cannot say anything right now,” Mirza said. He told AFP no formal arrests had been made but several people had been detained and questioned.

 

Defense Minister Elias Murr, speaking on LBC Thursday night, said the probe has uncovered “serious leads” but did not elaborate. Apart from the four men – believed to be connected to the vehicle used in the bombing – detained and questioned in Sidon Wednesday, investigations are focusing on two suspects who bought the vehicle to use it in carrying out the assassination.

 

Naharnet, quoting security sources, identified the first three individuals detained and questioned on Wednesday as fishermen Mohammad Masri, Talal Masri and Mohammad al-Atab. They were arrested in a raid on a house in Sidon”s Taamir district.

 

A fourth man identified as Hussein Nasser, was identified as the last man in whose name the vehicle was registered. Nasser sold the car just two days before the assassination to two unidentified men without even giving them a bill of sale or registering the car in their name. Investigators are trying to track down the suspects.

 

The 35 kilograms of high explosives were packed into an olive green BMW 320 that was parked along Hajj”s route.

Picture: REUTERS/Jamal Saidi (LEBANON)