Murr Hits Back at Aoun: If Only he Can Achieve 10% of Hariri”s Accomplishments
Defense Minister Elias Murr hit back at Free Patriotic Movement leader Gen. Michel Aoun for criticizing Mustaqbal Movement chief Saad Hariri”s efforts to facilitate Russian arms supplies for Lebanon.
"What is being said against MP Saad Hariri is not acceptable," Murr said in an interview with Future TV late Monday.
"Are we supposed to hold Saad Hariri accountable because he helped us and because he used his good offices to arm the Lebanese military?" asked Murr.
"Let them achieve 10 percent of Hariri”s accomplishments instead of going on trips and hullabaloo receptions," Murr said in reference to Aoun”s visit to Syria.
He said he believes the army is not capable of absorbing Hizbullah”s resistance and criticized those who oppose upgrading the military”s arsenal because it was done through their political opponents.
"Why don”t those who armed Hizbullah and claim to be keen on Lebanon provide the army with needed weapons?" he said.
"I am keen on my country”s safety and do not want to give Israel a pretext to destroy it again on our heads as it did in 2006," Murr declared.
He said Hariri had advised him to visit Russia, saying "they want to provide the army with weapons."
He ridiculed charges to Mustaqbal Movement of backing Fatah al-Islam saying the group headed by Hariri and the Sunni community provided the Army with "cover" during the Nahr al-Bared clashes.
"Had we had three MiGs during the Nahr al-Bared war, the army wouldn”t have lost that many martyrs," Murr said.
Murr believed that the May 7 attack by Hizbullah on West Beirut and the predominantly Druze sector of Mount Lebanon has led to "discussing Hizbullah weapons."
"If the weapons remain controversial and lack trust, they would be used by Israel as a pretext to attack us again," Murr added.