Lebanon Sought As a Battlefield Once Again
Minister of State Wael Abu Faour told the Voice of Lebanon radio station on Friday that the most important challenge for Lebanon, after the discovery of eight Katyusha rockets near the southern town of Naqoura on Thursday, was how to prevent Lebanon from being used as a battlefield once again. Abu Faour said that while the rockets seemed to be anonymous, their source was actually known. He added that the challenge was to preserve Lebanon’s independence so that it could not be used as a regional bargaining chip.
Abu Faour said that there was no indication that the issues surrounding the election of the five remaining members of the Constitutional Council would be resolved and removed from the current political debate. Abu Faour said that he discussed this issue, as well as other issues, during his recent meeting with Speaker Nabih Berri. Abu Faour said that discussions regarding the membership of the Constitutional Council were taking place behind closed doors however he added that no settlement had yet been reached.
He said that all political forces in Lebanon understood the importance of keeping political disputes within a democratic framework. Abu Faour also expressed gratitude to President Michel Sleiman for his efforts.
He said that, in principle, a meeting between the Progressive Socialist Party and Hezbollah had been decided upon however there were no further details available at this stage. Abu Faour said that PSP leader MP Walid Jumblatt had publicly announced that he was open to such a meeting, however, no practical steps had been taken to arrange the meeting at Youth and Sports Minister Talal Arslan’s residence in Khaldeh.