Lebanese leaders condemn attacks against army

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lebanese army emblemSeveral Lebanese leaders condemned on Monday yesterday’s attacks against the army in the southern Lebanese town of Sidon

President Michel Suleiman called the attacks “terrorist crimes,” saying they came “at a time the Lebanese are looking to the army in all regions as the guarantor of security, stability and civil peace, ” according to a presidential statement.

The statement added that Suleiman was in contact with concerned officials “to take all necessary measures to fight terrorism.”

An army communique reveled that three suspects were passing on foot through a checkpoint at al-Awwali bridge at Sidon’s entrance at 9:00 pm Sunday when a soldier asked for their identification papers.

One of the suspects threatened him with a grenade, which blew up when the soldier opened fire on him, it said.

The suspect was killed and two soldiers at the checkpoint were injured. The other two suspects escaped.

Forty five minutes later, a Palestinian blew himself up near an army checkpoint in the Majdelyoun area, killing himself and a sergeant, and wounding a soldier.

Two other Lebanese suspects, who were in a GM Envoy SUV , also died when members of the checkpoint opened fire on them.

“We condemn these two terrorist attacks … that targeted the military institution, which defends Lebanon and the Lebanese, and constitutes the shield of sovereignty and independence,” Caretaker Premier Najib Mikati said in a statement.

He appealed for support to the army and the rest of the security forces, saying “no one should be allowed to tamper with security and target the role of the military institution.”

Prime Minister-designate Tammam Salam also condemned the attacks and called in a statement for a “swift” probe to find the collaborators of the dead suspects and punish them.

“The army was and will always be the defensive structure of Lebanon and the Lebanese, and the guarantor of their security and stability,” he said in a statement.

“Any attack on its members under any circumstance is a bald assault on the Lebanese people and the entire nation,” he said.

Salam urged the Lebanese, in general, and Sidon residents, in particular, to “support the army and facilitate its mission” to stop those plotting to harm the institution and cause a gap between it and the people.

Former Lebanese PM and Future movement leader Saad Hariri also condemned the attacks and said they were at the top of the list of “chaos.”

Hariri called for unity with the army, saying it was “the duty of every citizen who believes in the state and the role of the military institution to be in solidarity with it.”

“Sidon will not allow under any circumstance to be dragged again to a confrontation with the Lebanese army,” he said in reference to the bloody clashes between supporters of Salafist cleric Sheikh Ahmed al-Asir and the military in the coastal city of Sidon last June.

Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea also condemned the “blatant” attack against troops, considering that Sunday’s events reassert that weapons must be exclusively in the hands of the state.

“The attack against the army in Sidon on Sunday shows the necessity of the state being the sole possessor of arms on Lebanese territory,” Geagea said in a statement.

He added: “The state must prevent, even if it has to use force, security incidents that threaten stability.”

“The possession and the use of arms trigger people to get armed and soldiers and the Lebanese are paying the price.” He said.

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26 responses to “Lebanese leaders condemn attacks against army”

  1. Leborigine Avatar

    I am not afraid of an army of lions led by a sheep; I am afraid of an army of sheep led by a lion.
    Alexander the Great

    1. 5thDrawer Avatar

      Wasn’t that G. Patton? Last of the Greats.

      1. Leborigine Avatar

        It could have been 5th, but I am afraid The Great was the original one who said it when he fought the Persians.

        However Patton did quote a fantastic line which reflects perfectly to our leaders and their herds …
        “I want you to remember that no bastard ever won a war by dying for his country. He won it by making the other poor, dumb bastard die for his country.”

        1. 5thDrawer Avatar

          Alexander was maybe the last who didn’t have politicians hauling him back in for the sake of ‘diplomacy’. He was also the government. :-)))

          1. Yes but like all the rest he got greedy…he should have stayed out of india…in the end the elephants got him.

          2. 5thDrawer Avatar

            And they NEVER forget. 😉 LOL …

    2. Dont be afraid of those that have many bombs….be afraid of those that have only 1.

      1. Leborigine Avatar

        That’s true dateam, but that quote would have worked well in the other article. Shots fired along the Israeli-Lebanon border 🙂

  2. Leborigine Avatar

    I am not afraid of an army of lions led by a sheep; I am afraid of an army of sheep led by a lion.
    Alexander the Great

    1. 5thDrawer Avatar

      Wasn’t that G. Patton? Last of the Greats.

      1. Leborigine Avatar

        It could have been 5th, but I am afraid The Great was the original one who said it when he fought the Persians.

        However Patton did quote a fantastic line which reflects perfectly to our leaders and their herds …
        “I want you to remember that no bastard ever won a war by dying for his country. He won it by making the other poor, dumb bastard die for his country.”

        1. 5thDrawer Avatar

          Alexander was maybe the last who didn’t have politicians hauling him back in for the sake of ‘diplomacy’. He was also the government. :-)))

          1. Yes but like all the rest he got greedy…he should have stayed out of india…in the end the elephants got him.

          2. 5thDrawer Avatar

            And they NEVER forget. 😉 LOL …

    2. Dont be afraid of those that have many bombs….be afraid of those that have only 1.

      1. Leborigine Avatar

        That’s true dateam, but that quote would have worked well in the other article. Shots fired along the Israeli-Lebanon border 🙂

  3. Yalibnan…I find it incredible that it has taken 2 days for an article to appear on your site regarding this incident….This is a blatant terrorist attack on our army yet you feel it is not important to highlight the incident….Some of the articles that have appeared on your site has absolutely no significance or meaning to Lebanese citizens….In case you are unaware the fallen soldiers name is SAMER RIZK ( RIP ). And to gagea this is not about illegal arms we are dealing with a potentially new threat here…We have had car bombings and now god forbid an even bigger threat of suicide bombers.

    1. 5thDrawer Avatar

      The Tripoli News in Lebanon barely gets out … and often 3 days late and watered down.
      YaLibnan is only a ‘collector’ of it, not a pack of ‘on-scene’ reporters with microphones.
      If they were, they would be dead … 😉
      I assume the ‘other articles’ are an attempt to teach something about the world events sometimes … as much as the USA lives in a vacuum away from ‘outside’ events, the blog does a fair job I think. Could it operate in Beirut this way??
      We wish it was ‘up-to-the-minute’ … the only way to get that is texting on a phone to a friend living in the place … and then we would find there are too many little everyday tragedies going on, and be overwhelmed.

      1. I know but seriously…theres more news on iran on this site than lebanon sometimes…who cares? We had our army attacked and theres articles on horse meat in france , and robots of the future????

        1. 5thDrawer Avatar

          Need SOME ‘comic relief’ before we all go crazy … :-))

    2. Dateam

      Are you ok?

      Ya Libnan was the first to publish an article about the incident and you even commented on it .

      Here is the link

      https://yalibnan.com/2013/12/16/shots-fired-along-the-israel-lebanon-border-u-n/

      Glad you are checking on us

  4. Yalibnan…I find it incredible that it has taken 2 days for an article to appear on your site regarding this incident….This is a blatant terrorist attack on our army yet you feel it is not important to highlight the incident….Some of the articles that have appeared on your site has absolutely no significance or meaning to Lebanese citizens….In case you are unaware the fallen soldiers name is SAMER RIZK ( RIP ). And to gagea this is not about illegal arms we are dealing with a potentially new threat here…We have had car bombings and now god forbid an even bigger threat of suicide bombers.

    1. 5thDrawer Avatar

      The Tripoli News in Lebanon barely gets out … and often 3 days late and watered down.
      YaLibnan is only a ‘collector’ of it, not a pack of ‘on-scene’ reporters with microphones.
      If they were, they would be dead … 😉
      I assume the ‘other articles’ are an attempt to teach something about the world events sometimes … as much as the USA lives in a vacuum away from ‘outside’ events, the blog does a fair job I think. Could it operate in Beirut this way??

      1. I know but seriously…theres more news on iran on this site than lebanon sometimes…who cares? We had our army attacked and theres articles on horse meat in france , and robots of the future????

        1. 5thDrawer Avatar

          Need SOME ‘comic relief’ before we all go crazy … :-))

    2. Dateam

      Are you ok?

      Ya Libnan was the first to publish an article about the incident and you even commented on it .

      Here is the link

      https://yalibnan.com/2013/12/16/shots-fired-along-the-israel-lebanon-border-u-n/

      Glad you are checking on us

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