Youth and Sports Minister Mohammad Fneish who represents Hezbollah in the cabinet praised President Michel Aoun’s speech at the Arab League Summit in Jordan, calling it an accurate representation of Lebanon’s political stances.
“The president of the republic was adamant about reuniting the Arabs at the Arab Summit, bringing key issues to the forefront, preventing interference in their internal affairs and ending strife,” Al Joumhouria daily quoted the Hezbollah official as saying on Thursday.
He added that the speech was an inclusive representation of Lebanon’s official position on political matters.
“This position does not only reflect the president’s [position], but also the Prime Minister’s (Saad Hariri), who also participated in the summit, as well as all the different political representatives in government,” Fneish said.
Five former Lebanese presidents and prime ministers sent earlier this week, a letter to the Arab League Summit, as well as to President Aoun, Prime Minister Hariri and Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri. This move was criticized by Berri
Aoun did not mention Hezbollah in his speech at the Arab Summit.
Arab diplomatic sources told the pro Hezbollah daily Al Akhbar that the speech did not go unnoticed and “left a positive influence on heads of the delegations who considered that Lebanon should play a leading role,” said the sources on condition of anonymity.
In his speech, Aoun highlighted the aggravating refugee burden and warned that Lebanon is reeling under the pressure of around two million Syrian and Palestinian refugees on its soil.
The President said that alleviating the misery of the displaced and their salvation from the harshness of their mandatory migration, in addition to sparing Lebanon the social, economic, security and political repercussions, can only be achieved through their safe return to their homeland.
Aoun urged an end to “wars between brothers”, expressing Lebanon’s full readiness to help in bridging the differences and reviving the language of dialogue.
He called on the Arab League to come up with internal solutions to end the wars and strife across the region.
AL backs Lebanese army
The Arab League on Wednesday backed the right of the Lebanese to “resist” any Israeli attack and called on all countries in the world to offer support to the Lebanese army.
The Arab Summit “welcomes the election of General Michel Aoun as president of the Lebanese republic as a decisive step that guarantees Lebanon’s ability to confront the pressing political, security, economic and social challenges,” said a paper issued by the League and titled “Solidarity with Lebanon”.
It also welcomed the content of Aoun’s presidential oath of office in terms of “adherence to the Lebanese people’s unity and civil peace, which would keep it safe from the blazes raging around it in the region.”
The League also lauded Aoun’s call for “respecting the Arab League charter, especially Article 8,” and his announcement that “Lebanon will endorse an independent foreign policy based on Lebanon’s higher interest and respect for international law.”
Turning to Lebanon’s conflict with Israel, the League stressed “the right of the Lebanese to liberate or retrieve the Shebaa Farms, the Lebanese Kfarshouba Hills and the Lebanese side of the Ghajar village, and their right to resist any attack through the legitimate means.”
The League also stressed the importance to “differentiate between terrorism and legitimate resistance against the Israeli occupation, which is a right acknowledged by the international charters and the principles of the international law.”
“The act of resistance should not be considered a terrorist act,” the League’s Solidarity with Lebanon paper said.
The League “backs Lebanon stance in asking the international community to implement U.N. Security Council 1701, which is based on the resolutions 425 and 426, through putting an end once and for all to Israel’s violations and threats to its civilian facilities and infrastructure,” the paper adds.
The League also welcomed the aid that has been offered by some countries to the Lebanese army and security forces, “topped by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” urging all countries to “enhance the capabilities of the Lebanese army and enable it to perform its missions, seeing as it is the pillar of security, stability and civil peace in Lebanon.”
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