Lebanon FM slams GCC move against Hezbollah supporters

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mansour ,   FMLebanese caretaker Foreign Affairs Minister Adnan Mansour criticized the decision taken by Gulf countries to take actions against Hezbollah supporters over the party’s increased involvement in the fighting in Syria.

“The Gulf Cooperation Council decision to take measures against Hezbollah is political and won’t affect the brotherly relations with these countries,” Mansour told LBC television station on Tuesday.

“There’s no justification for expelling the Lebanese nationals from Gulf states,” Now quoted him as saying

The minister also said that Hezbollah cannot be made solely responsible for interfering in the fighting in Syria.

“More than one Lebanese side interfered in Syria and blame could not be put on one side only.” Mansour, a member of the Amal Movement a close ally of Hezbollah said.

On Monday, the GCC announced it will take action against the partisans of Hezbollah due to the Lebanese Shiite party’s active role in the Syrian war.

Hezbollah fighters have been fighting alongside the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and were able to win the battle for the Syrian border town of Al-Qusayr, a strategic rebel stronghold linking Damascus to the Mediterranean coast.

Syria’s rebels conceded last Wednesday that they had lost the battle for Al-Qusayr after the army claimed it had seized total control of it and the surrounding region.

Shiite expats worried

The GCC announcement has sparked fears that Lebanese Shiite expatriates unaffiliated with the party could be singled out or even expelled, analysts said Tuesday.

“Lebanese Shiites may face expulsion for their alleged affiliation with the party,” economist Ghazi Wazni was quoted as saying by the Daily Star.

Wazni did not know how many Lebanese Shiites were working in the Arab Gulf countries:

“No one has details or information on the number of Lebanese Shiite in the Gulf region but I doubt that the number of the Shiite will exceed 18 percent of the entire Lebanese expatriates in these countries,” Wazni said.

There are an estimated 500,000 Lebanese expatriates in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar and Oman – the GCC’s six member states.

Some of the Lebanese Shiite businessmen who have been working in the UAE for many years fear that the authorities may suddenly find an excuse to expel them.

Two years ago, the UAE expelled close to 100 Lebanese Shiites, citing security reasons.

A fall in the number of Lebanese expatriates could have another effect. Remittances from expats in the GCC come to around $4 billion every year – more than 50 percent of the global total remitances.

Wazni said he feared the Lebanese economy would suffer significantly if the remittances from the GCC fell drastically.

Another economist, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that some of the Gulf states may even withdraw their investment from Lebanon in a bid to force the authorities to apply more pressure on Hezbollah.

Sources estimate Gulf investments in Lebanon over the past 10 years have reached close to $12 billion.

According to the economist all these pressurs may not dissuade Hezbollah from getting involved in Syria and Lebanon in the end may pay the price if the Arabian Gulf countries decided to apply penalties on the country

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24 responses to “Lebanon FM slams GCC move against Hezbollah supporters”

  1. freelebanonman Avatar
    freelebanonman

    Mr. Adnan Mansour, if you just keep silent and dont yak any more about anything, that be best for Lebanon’s interest as state, country and people, you are no more active Foreighn minister and you dont represent Lebanon the state or the people, you just bark for Hezbollah , you have no more legitimacy in a govenment that resigned and lost the vote of trust of the people of Lebanon.

    1. dateam Avatar

      Im not defending this guy but I believe as Lebanese we need to look at both sides….as a lebanese person one can not condone one side and not condone the other side…yes hzb went into syria after the fact we know that very well…but at the same time the GCC countires have used lebanon from the start of this conflict to funnel weapons and fighters through lebanon have they not? Then they turn around after qusar finished and tell their nationals to leave lebanon? Please tell me where do we start and where do we finish?

      1. 5thDrawer Avatar
        5thDrawer

        Start with a true democracy … and secular laws … then let the chips fall where they may.
        At least it might be a more honest reflection of a country’s desires and how it wants to be seen by the rest of the world.

        1. dateam Avatar

          Im the first to second that…

  2. freelebanonman Avatar
    freelebanonman

    Mr. Adnan Mansour, if you just keep silent and dont yak any more about anything, that be best for Lebanon’s interest as state, country and people, you are no more active Foreighn minister and you dont represent Lebanon the state or the people, you just bark for Hezbollah , you have no more legitimacy in a govenment that resigned and lost the vote of trust of the people of Lebanon.

    1. dateam Avatar

      Im not defending this guy but I believe as Lebanese we need to look at both sides….as a lebanese person one can not condone one side and not condone the other side…yes hzb went into syria after the fact we know that very well…but at the same time the GCC countires have used lebanon from the start of this conflict to funnel weapons and fighters through lebanon have they not? Then they turn around after qusar finished and tell their nationals to leave lebanon? Please tell me where do we start and where do we finish?

      1. 5thDrawer Avatar
        5thDrawer

        Start with a true democracy … and secular laws … then let the chips fall where they may.
        At least it might be a more honest reflection of a country’s desires and how it wants to be seen by the rest of the world.

        1. dateam Avatar

          Im the first to second that…

  3. Beiruti Avatar

    Why don’t you start by condemning the men who shot Salman couple days ago…

    1. juboraaz Avatar
      juboraaz

      I condemn the perpetrators who killed Mr. Salman whomever they are, would you condemn the terror act that took place in Damascus yesterday and the kidnapping of 8 Lebanese citizens for over 18 months now?

      1. Beiruti Avatar

        Yes i would, nice try trying to change the subject though, stop using pity it doesn’t work against other Arab people who lived half their lives in war, i.e. me!

        1. juboraaz Avatar
          juboraaz

          I too lived during the civil war and that is why I do not promote war. The problem is we keep making the same mistakes by passing our problems down to our children as our parents did to us. Hate, bigotry and killing never solve a problem.

          1. 5thDrawer Avatar
            5thDrawer

            Putting a 10-yr-old on the street with an AK47&FlackJacket – or teenagers with clubs and shotguns – instead of them being in school … doesn’t help much.

  4. Beiruti Avatar

    Why don’t you start by condemning the men who shot Salman couple days ago…

    1. juboraaz Avatar
      juboraaz

      I condemn the perpetrators who killed Mr. Salman whomever they are, would you condemn the terror act that took place in Damascus yesterday and the kidnapping of 8 Lebanese citizens for over 18 months now?

      1. Beiruti Avatar

        Yes i would, nice try trying to change the subject though, stop using pity it doesn’t work against other Arab people who lived half their lives in war.

        1. juboraaz Avatar
          juboraaz

          I too lived during the civil war and that is why I do not promote war. The problem is we keep making the same mistakes by passing our problems down to our children as our parents did to us. Hate, bigotry and killing never solve a problem.

          1. 5thDrawer Avatar
            5thDrawer

            Putting a 10-yr-old on the street with an AK47&FlackJacket – or teenagers with clubs and shotguns – instead of them being in school … doesn’t help much.

  5. Hesperian Avatar
    Hesperian

    Adman Sarsour…what an idiot
    Where are the suicide bombers!!!!!
    Let’s see where he is going to hide when his master Bashar al humar is thrown out..

  6. Hesperian Avatar
    Hesperian

    Adman Sarsour…what an idiot
    Where are the suicide bombers!!!!!
    Let’s see where he is going to hide when his master Bashar al humar is thrown out..

  7. Amine123 Avatar
    Amine123

    You want to kill our brothers in Syria and in the same time you want GCC to extend their hands to help your puppet resistance of IRAN?
    Go to hell Mansour and go back to Iran where you belong, this time you miscalculated the consequences of your HA actions, the Shiites will pay big price for this and above all Lebanon too???

  8. Amine123 Avatar
    Amine123

    You want to kill our brothers in Syria and in the same time you want GCC to extend their hands to help your puppet resistance of IRAN?
    Go to hell Mansour and go back to Iran where you belong, this time you miscalculated the consequences of your HA actions, the Shiites will pay big price for this and above all Lebanon too???

  9. Constantin7 Avatar
    Constantin7

    This man is the foreign minister of HA and not of Lebanon. He does not represent 75% of the Lebanese, not the Lebanese government. Feteh dekkeneh aala hsebo. He should have been fired since a long time, but of course we fear HA violent reaction if he’s fired.

  10. Constantin7 Avatar
    Constantin7

    This man is the foreign minister of HA and not of Lebanon. He does not represent 75% of the Lebanese, not the Lebanese government. Feteh dekkeneh aala hsebo. He should have been fired since a long time, but of course we fear HA violent reaction if he’s fired.

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