Syrian Rebels Breached Lebanese Sovereignty, Berri: National Dialogue A Must
Fragile calm returned to the capital of Northern Lebanon, leaving the squares for the Lebanese Army (LA) and people as they try to restore their normal lives back.
In Tripoli, fear prevails as the battle-torn streets narrate stories of political sides that invested the blood of Lebanese to attack the national army and internal stability.
Three days of clashes have ended. Eight people were killed and 100 wounded; a toll that uncovered that all Future Movement alleged claims are only lies.
The conspiracy was huge, and the Future's slogan "we are a party of dialogue and word away from arms" was buried in Tripoli's deep sea.
AL Protects Truce, Conspiracy Huge
As the LA deployed Tuesday in sectors of Tripoli affected by clashes, Lebanese papers unveiled some of the conspiracy threads that were planned to the city as well as the whole country.
According to "as-Safir" Lebanese newspaper, the General Security arrest to Shadi al-Mawlawi formed only the tip of the iceberg, in relation to the data held by the competent authorities about the activity of some extremist cells in Lebanon."
In this context, well-informed sources informed the daily that "the Lebanese authorities received reliable and dangerous information on terrorist attacks that were planned against Lebanon."
"House Speaker Nabih Berri and several other senior Lebanese officials might be the target of a security threat by the terrorist group," it reported.
Similarly, "an-Nahar" newspaper stated that "Lebanese top officials, including Berri received warning messages from various countries that fundamentalist elements had entered Lebanon to assassinate a number of officials."
"These messages intersected with security services' information which advised the target Lebanese figures to take the necessary precautions," "an-Nahar" said.
Meanwhile, the Director of the General Security Brig. Gen, Abbas Ibrahim said "the arrest of al-Mawlawi came in coordination with a Western Intelligence agency.
After three days of silence on the arrest, Ibrahim confirmed that "this file was coordinated a superpower state, which is unlikely to enter in the Lebanese sectarian alleys."
"The case of al-Mawlawi is thorny and big," he highlighted, stating that "his department had been following his file for 13 days without informing anyone other than the necessary sides."
In a Press conference he held with journalists from Arab newspapers, Ibrahim questioned the "backgrounds of anger at the arrest of al-Mawlawi, who was charged earlier this week of being a member of an armed terrorist group."
Ibrahim reiterated that the General Security acts only under judicial orders.
"My orders are judicial, these do not come from leaders and street alleys ... I receive a judicial order and I implement it. I don't care about the reactions because when there is a legal and judicial cover, there are no red lines."
Political Cover for LA
For his part, Lebanese President Michel Suleiman assured his visitors that stability governs the domestic arena, despite some security setbacks similar to those witnessed in Tripoli.
He further emphasized that "the military and security forces are fully performing their duties as required in similar circumstances," and revealed that the Supreme Council of Defense convened in the light of information related to the activities of extremist fundamentalist cells."
In parallel, House Speaker Berri Speaker described the army's deployment in Tripoli as "relieving," noting that "all the facilitations must be provided to prevent sedition and secure the success of the LA's mission."
In an interview with "as-Safir", Berri urged all Lebanese sides to "help the army maintain security and prevent sedition."
Berri noted that the big mistake was to stop the national dialogue, stressing that "the importance of the dialogue table emerges amid these difficult conditions."
"It was important to resume the dialogue, even if some sides were absent," he confirmed.
Syrian Rebels Attack Lebanon
On another security concern, "al-Akhbar" daily reported Wednesday that "the Lebanese borders are witnessing daily security breaches by Syrian rebels."
"The military operations involve dozens of gunmen who kidnap, burn houses, and shell mortars," it added.
The paper further clarified that "the Lebanese Beqaa borders with Syria have been witnessing a heated battle for several days, until it reached the level of serious clashes Tuesday."
According to the paper's information, the so-called "Free Syrian Army" rebels killed Tuesday Ali Abu Bakr by bombing the Lebanese territory with rocket-propelled grenades."
"On the Syrian side, the rebels claim that three of their members were killed by a Hizbullah ambush," "al-Akhbar" added.
This came as the daily learned that a US embassy delegation cancelled its visit to the West and Mid Beqaa because of the Northern security developments.
"The visit was to check the Syrian refugees in the region," it mentioned.
Gov't to Convene...
On the political level, the Lebanese government is to convene Wednesday with a condensed agenda aimed at tackling various legal, financial, and security affairs, most notably the Tripoli clashes.
As the Lebanese dailies ruled out any contacts on extra governmental spending, ministerial sources told "as-Safir" that "no agreement was reached on this level."
For his part, Head of the "Change and Reform" bloc MP Michel Aoun accused President Suleiman, PM Mikati, and National Struggle Front leader MP Walid Jumblat of "practicing obstruction and pushing the country to a harmful course."
"They deprived us of the majority that allows us to take decisions. Suleiman is obstructing the LL8,900 billion decree and says there are obstacles," Aoun told OTV.
He also said that " they are creating a vacuum in state institutions by refusing to make appointments."
Source: Lebanese newspapers, Translated and Edited by moqawama.org
