Jumblatt calls for disarming Hizbullah, respecting Taif
Democratic Gathering and Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) leader MP Walid Jumblatt said the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) should be the country”s exclusive holders of arms in his weekly editorial for PSP-owned Al-Anbaa newspaper.
Jumblatt denounced the gunfire which accompanies the television appearances and speeches of Lebanese leaders, saying that the Lebanese people have suffered and worried enough and that they didn”t need more innocent victims and martyrs.
He said the gunshots would “willingly or unwillingly” be seen as a provocation to the LAF and other security institutions who could only consider this as an insult to their hard work in trying to maintain stability.
The Druze leader called on local figures to try and control their crowds by inflicting legal punishment in case of arms use.
“We shouldn”t give more political means for armed militias, whether it is the resistance or not; arms belong to the government and no one else,” Jumblatt editorial said.
The resistance was losing its “positive image” by using its arms for other purposes than protecting the country he said, adding these purposes are in contradiction with the “peaceful and democratic path taken by the ruling March 14 coalition.”
As for leaders” posters invading walls, Jumblatt said that not only did they ruin some neighborhoods, but they were also leading to tensions.
Commenting on the recent Israeli military maneuvers, Jumblatt said that it was yet another proof that Lebanon is the arena of a number of conflicts.
He added that Syria deployed its army on the Syrian-Lebanese border instead of sending its men to the Syrian-Israeli border, showing that “Israel and Syria want Lebanon to be the theater of their own interests.”
He urged politicians to avoid the possible “catastrophic open war” by revising and respecting the Taif agreement “that stipulates a truce with Israel.”
Regarding LAF commander Michel Suleiman”s announcement that he will quit his post on August 21, Jumblatt said that Suleiman remains the consensus presidential candidate.