Speaking during a press conference in Mokhtara, Jumblatt said it is difficult for him to forget his father’s 1977 assassination and defended his recent speeches. “I don’t know if my last speeches bothered Talal Arslan, but this is my style,” he stated.
“If security and political circumstances paved the way for Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah to meet with me, I am ready, and if not, it is ok,” Jumblatt said. He confirmed that Arslan was correct in saying that he had postponed a meeting with a Hezbollah delegation because Jumblatt was waiting for a meeting to first take place between Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and Future Movement leader MP Saad Hariri.
“I condemn the Kfarhim incident, and I directly called Army Commander Jean Kahwaji and called on him to be firm and decisive and I told him that those responsible for this act should be brought to justice,” he added, in reference to recent clashes between PSP supporters and body guards of Tawheed leader Wiam Wahhab.
“I do not want to respond to former Minister Wiam Wahhab’s speeches that followed the Kfarhim incident, but I would like to tell him that he is welcome at any time, in addition to others, in Mokhtara,” he said.
Jumblatt also said that he was committed to “calm” public speeches and that the national dialogue roundtable had begun to show positive results. He added that if the dialogue led to the implementation of issues on which the body reached a consensus then the first thing to be established would be diplomatic ties between Lebanon and Syria.
He also affirmed that the Shebaa Farms should be recognized as part of Lebanese territory.
“It is not true that the Palestinian Refugee camps are a source of terrorism, it is Syria that is behind the terrorist factions,” he said, adding that it was also necessary to resolve the issue of Palestinian weapons outside the refugee camps.
“Those who want to forge relations with Lebanon should respect its sovereignty, put an end to the smuggling of weapons and terrorist fighters along its borders,” Jumblatt said.
He also recognized that Syria had the right to liberate its territories, but not at the expense of Lebanon or Lebanese territory. "We too have the right to live in peace" he added
