Home News Daily news from Lebanon Army Gives Gunmen Deadline to Disarm or Use Force

Army Gives Gunmen Deadline to Disarm or Use Force

Lebanon news, Lebanese radio station , world news, music, discover Lebanon, visit Beirut,  Radio sawt Beirut

Written by Editor

Tuesday, 13 May 2008

The Lebanese army said it will use force if necessary from Tuesday to disarm gunmen and restore law and order after six days of fighting between pro- and anti-government supporters left at least 61 people killed and nearly 200 wounded across the country. "Following the events of recent days, namely in Beirut and in the mountains, army units have bolstered their deployment in zones of tension and are working to ensure security, re-establish order and ban all armed presence," an army statement said. "Army units will ban collective or individual irregularities in line with legal procedures, even if this means using force," it said. "This decision will be effective starting at 6:00 am (0300 GMT) on May 13." The military urged all warring factions to cooperate with soldiers in order "to guarantee everyone's security." The clashes have pitted government supporters against the Hizbullah-led opposition which seized control of mostly Muslim west Beirut on Friday. The violence erupted after the government said it would investigate a Hizbullah telephone network and reassign airport security chief Brig. Gen. Wafiq Shoqeir over his alleged links to Hizbullah. Opposition gunmen withdrew from Beirut's streets on Saturday after the army acted to overturn the decisions. The army has moved into several areas of tension, including the Druze mountains southeast of the capital after weekend gun battles there between the rival factions. An army communique said that "following the events of recent days, namely in Beirut and in the mountains, army units have bolstered their deployment in zones of tension and are working to ensure security, re-establish order and ban all armed presence." The violence also dramatically raised the stakes in a protracted political crisis. After foreign ministers held weekend crisis talks in Cairo, an Arab League delegation prepared to visit Beirut on Wednesday in a bid to end the fighting. Hizbullah welcomed the Arab League decision but insisted that the delegation must be neutral. "We ask the Arabs not to favor one party over another," Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah's political aide Hussein Khalil told a news conference late Monday. The showdown saw Hizbullah gunmen seize large swathes of west Beirut last week, plunging an already fragile nation into fear and uncertainty. The international community reacted with alarm to the fighting. U.S. President George Bush warned Iran and Syria that the international community would not allow Lebanon to fall under foreign domination through their proxies again. "I strongly condemn Hizbullah's recent efforts, and those of their foreign sponsors in Tehran and Damascus, to use violence and intimidation to bend the government and people of Lebanon to their will," Bush said in a statement. "The international community will not allow the Iranian and Syrian regimes, via their proxies, to return Lebanon to foreign domination and control." Bush reaffirmed Washington's support for the government of Prime Minister Fouad Saniora. "To ensure the safety and security of the people of Lebanon, the United States will continue its assistance to the Lebanese Armed Forces to ensure they are able to defend the Lebanese Government and safeguard its institutions," he said. Bush, who leaves Tuesday on a five-day trip to Israel, Saudi Arabia and Egypt, said he planned to consult with regional leaders to coordinate efforts to support Saniora's government and implement U.N. resolutions supporting Lebanon's sovereignty. The international "Friends of Lebanon" group called for an immediate end to the violence and long-delayed presidential elections with no pre-conditions. Canada's Foreign Minister Maxime Bernier blamed Hizbullah for the clashes saying: "We are supporting the Lebanese government and we hope that peace and security will come back to Lebanon." Clashes turned deadly on Thursday after Nasrallah accused the government of declaring war against his party when it took its decision to investigate the group's private telecommunications network and reassign the airport security chief. Speaker and opposition stalwart Nabih Berri meanwhile postponed a 19th attempt to elect a president, scheduled for Tuesday, until June 10, LBCI television reported.(AFP-Naharnet)

 

 

Lebanon news, Lebanese radio station , world news, music, discover Lebanon, visit Beirut,  Radio sawt Beirut , Lebanese music, president elections in Lebanon
get info about the Lebanese Political Parties by visiting http://www.sawtbeirut.com/lebanese-party

Read articles about Lebanon, Love and friendship, how to treat your next part at relationship at http://www.sawtbeirut.com/blog  

< Prev		Next >